Miscellaneous

Burning Man Braids

September 13, 2023 5 Comments

I’ve taken up a lot of new hobbies recently, like eating pounds of gummy bears, making friendship bracelets, and re-watching Modern Family 90 times. But on top of those hobbies, I’ve also been keeping up with my hobby-turned-side-hustle: braiding hair! I first talked about braiding in July 2018, more than 5 years ago. When I look back at that post now and see the quality of my hairstyles, I cringe. But that is good, because it means I’ve been continuously improving.

When I first created an Instagram account just for hair, I followed 30 people. Now I have more than 4,000 followers myself! I haven’t talked about braiding on here since November 2021, when I braided 21 people for the NYC Marathon, but I’ve been quietly continuing my passion business, and I actually braided 20 people last year for the 2022 NYC Marathon. I’ve written before about how I randomly fell in with the running community, and it’s been so interesting to watch my business take off in ways I never predicted. I wasn’t sure if braids were just “having a moment,” but five years later, it seems like they are here to stay, at least for certain things.

Running braids have continued to be a big source of business for me, and I already have 11 clients booked for the NYC Marathon this upcoming November. But it’s not just running, people have found me for all sorts of reasons. So far this year I have had 32 separate clients, including 4 birthday parties, a 1:1 braiding lesson, hair for a family photoshoot, girls for school field days and before going to sleepaway camp, and of course a few people for the NYC Half Marathon. Somehow, despite having the most traumatic year of my life, my side business has been thriving. I’m not going to lie, the administration side of the business has been a challenge, since I mentioned that my cognitive functioning has been less than ideal. I accidentally double booked someone two weeks ago and had a minor freakout, but I tried to give myself grace and ultimately, I was able to reschedule everyone successfully.

You may be wondering why I decided to post now, during a random September week, about braiding again, and that’s because what happened three weeks ago was brand new: BURNER BRAIDS. If you haven’t heard of Burning Man before, you’re not alone. The event this year got more press than normal, so you may know about it now, but I knew very little until three weeks ago. It is an annual, week-long festival in the middle of the Black Rock Desert outside Reno, Nevada, where 35,000-70,000 people congregate and create their own temporary city. According to Wikipedia, where I got most of my information before talking to actual Burners (that’s what the participants are called), the event is guided by ten principles: radical inclusion, gifting, decommodification, radical self-reliance, radical self-expression, communal effort, civic responsibility, leaving no trace, participation, and immediacy.

You can either “open camp” or bring an RV. Once there, you mostly ride bikes around to other camps, and you aren’t allowed to have a car unless it’s a piece of art. You also cannot transfer any money, so everything is gifted between people. Each camp has their own unique gift, whether it is experiences, like a “human car wash,” or food, or a sangria bar. Everything you might need is provided by others. The desert area where people congregate is called “the playa” and people often say, “the playa will provide,” but what they really mean is, other Burners will help you out.

So, what does any of this have to do with braids? Well, first of all, the event is in the desert and showers are hard to come by. People who choose to come in RVs may have them, but it’s still complicated because you can’t dump used water in the desert and you aren’t allowed to leave a trace, so this makes hair-washing complicated. More importantly than the lack of showers, there is an abundance of sand. Specifically, the sand in Black Rock is not actually sand, it’s the alkaline remnants of an old lakebed. This means it sticks to everything including skin and hair. Burners are advised to bring vinegar to spray on themselves because it’s the only way to get it off. Between the wind and alkaline residue, long hair gets matted and often need to be cut before being detangled upon “reintegration” into the “default world.” Most Burners try to avoid this, therefore, braids. There are many threads on reddit dedicated to “long hair ideas” for Burning Man and almost all of them suggest braids.

Friends who braid together, stay together!

Between 2019 and 2022, I braided about two people per year for festivals, but this year it seems I went viral! I ended up braiding 13 people for Burning Man, and that was on top of my “real” full-time job! I was exhausted. In fact, I started turning people away a few weeks before because I knew I couldn’t handle any more. People often ask me if my hands hurt from braiding, but it’s not my hands, it’s my back! First of all, being on my feet is taxing. While I usually believe in a no-shoe apartment, I make an exception for braiding. When I’m leaning left to right, left to right, left to right, trying to get those stitches JUST RIGHT, it creates a lot of torque on my back, and shoes with good support help slightly. Laying on the floor also helps. Some days during the last month, I laid on the carpet before clients, and then again after.

Here’s me, laying on the floor pre-client.

I took so many amazing photos and videos of people’s hairstyles, and at first, I was trying to hold back from posting content on Instagram because I wanted to wait for photos from the actual event. But I couldn’t resist and I ended up posting three styles (here’s one!) that couldn’t wait. Also, I wasn’t sure if waiting made sense, since I couldn’t be sure if there would be any photos from my clients. The alkaline sand is not only bad for hair, but also bad for phones and cameras, and since there isn’t any cell phone service in the desert anyway, not all people choose to take pictures. However, sometimes people put together amazing outfits, and I wanted to see the hair together with the whole look!

The final weekend of Burning Man, as I was waiting not-so-patiently for my clients to come back, I was braiding two girls for Electric Zoo, another festival in New York, and they told me there was tragedy at Burning Man, with monsoon storms completely saturating the entire camp, and stranding tens of thousands of people in the desert due to road flooding. My first thought was, I hope they have enough food and water! My second thought was, I hope the braids hold up! As more news and videos came out, I was even more nervous. I heard they were told to conserve food and water, and that they did not know when people would be able to leave.

I waited and hoped, and posted on my Instagram stories to see if people were ok. About one week after, I sent direct messages to everyone to see if they were ok, and I was relieved to find that most said the news was far worse than the real situation. Everyone said that while it was extremely muddy, they all helped each other out and got home safely. I heard from a few people that they were extremely glad to have braids because once they were told to conserve water, hair washing was out of the question! Remember when I told you that I had a double-booking issue? My favorite story of the week was that two friends who came to my house to have their hair done, met another girl who was here at the same time because I was running a bit behind. They were talking together for a while, and they ended up meeting up in the desert despite not having any cell service! They took photos together and they looked so happy and awesome with their braids. It warmed my heart!

I can’t finish my blog without mentioning the necessary tie-in to last week’s post on small talk. In addition to hurting my back, the other thing that usually exhausts me from braiding is the constant chit-chat. I have an incredible amount of respect for full-time stylists who need to talk all day, it’s tiring! Add that to the fact that I no longer exceed in small-talk, and it’s especially grueling. One of the reasons I learned so much about Burning Man this year is because I employed my favorite tactic from last week’s blog: asking many questions so as not to have the conversation fall back to the topic of me. Braiding hair now carries an additional complication, especially when I am braiding for birthday parties, because the topic of children and how good I am with them tends to come up. When I did a family’s hair for their annual photos, it came up. I am always doing mental calculus about what to share and how to skirt the topic of family, but when I’m braiding in my apartment that I share with my husband, family inevitably comes up sometimes. I remember braiding clients in January with my ultrasound photos on the fridge in the back of my time lapse videos! This past month, thankfully I was only asked once about kids when we were talking about our relationships. I am never sure whether to be fully honest, but in this case, it was just the two of us, and I acknowledged that I had a daughter, but that she died. I kept it moving and immediately asked another question about how long she had been in her relationship. The moment passed, and I felt relieved and happy that I didn’t lie. It’s complicated because I want to be honest, but I try not to kill the mood. It’s not a secret that I lost a daughter and it’s pretty visible if you follow me on Instagram or watch my stories, so I try to strike a balance. I hope that with more time, I find it easier to talk about her in casual conversation.

Braiding for festivals this year was a blast and an exciting change of pace. When I braid for a race, I’m on a tight schedule with so many clients that I can’t try anything new. For the festivals, I have a chance to be creative and I try new styles I have never done. Each client came with their own inspiration, and I was able to bring the styles to life. I loved the freedom and creativity that went along with working with colored extensions and having more flexible time. I am not sure how many more clients I’ll be able to take for the rest of the year besides for the NYC Marathon, since I am traveling almost every week this season, but I’ll keep you posted. If you don’t already follow my hair account on Instagram, check me out @BraidInManhattan or look at my website, I even made a new section for Festival Hair!

Grief and Pregnancy Loss, Miscellaneous

Highlight Reel

August 8, 2023 3 Comments

TW: Pregnancy Loss

Last week I talked about social media and how I have been taking a break to get away from the “highlight reel,” which constantly makes me feel like my life is filled with lowlights. This week, I wanted to switch it up and show you some of my own highlights.

I want to be clear that I’m not doing this to show you that I’m ok. I’m not. I also don’t want to give the impression that in these moments, I forgot about my daughter. I didn’t. But emotions are complicated and layered, and they don’t fit into an easy box. So many different things can exist at the same time: happiness and sadness, joy and anxiety, laughter and fear. That said, here are a few times I felt better than other times over the past 5 months. And for my parents, I included photos as #proofoflife. Sometimes I smile, and some of those times (not all times), it’s actually genuine!

(Friends, family, if I have seen you in the past few months and you are not included in this post, please realize that it has nothing to do with you. It’s not easy to get out of my head and feel happy, so if my time with you is not on this list, I was probably having a bad day. There are more of those than good days. Sometimes I appreciate company on bad days even more than on good days.)

Speaking of highlights, my first positive thing that happened was getting my hair colored. For some reason, whenever I am going through some sh*t, I have this feral need to change my hair. I remember after my first horrible breakup I dyed my hair DARK to reflect my mood. This time, I was hoping for a fresh start, so I went super light blonde for spring. I’m including a photo here but don’t judge my ghastly dark circle eyes appearance, this was 3 days after leaving the hospital. You can see the full color transformation video from my stylist’s Instagram. #NewHairNewMe

I was looking forward to maternity leave and bonding with my baby. I was not looking forward to weeks on the couch recovering from a long hospital stay with no living baby to show for it. Two highlights from my recovery: gummy bears & a Friends coloring book. In those early days, I received cards and flowers and succulents, and ubereats gift cards, and all of them were appreciated. But I wasn’t really thinking about food in terms of meals. I was thinking more in terms of what I mindlessly put in my mouth while sitting on the couch barely comprehending Modern Family. I ate literally 10 pounds of gummy bears those first two months. Five pounds of those were sent from my friend who also sent comfy PJs. I lived in those pajamas for days on end while I consumed pure sugar. I wasn’t allowed to work out, and there’s only so much staring at the wall you can do, but I loved my Friends coloring book. It was mindless but it kept my hands busy instead of scrolling social media. Flipping through the coloring book and remembering all of the scenes where I had laughed out loud reminded me of some of the things I loved and found funny “before.”

Six weeks after losing our daughter, Chris planned a surprise staycation for us. We stayed at the Beekman hotel downtown and it was the perfect low-stakes way to have our first night out of our apartment together. We took a quick Uber ride downtown and it was as if we were transported to a different time. I didn’t have to sit at the same table where I was sitting when my doctor told me to come into the hospital. I didn’t have to stare at the empty spot in our living room where the baby swing had been set up. I didn’t have to look at my empty fridge door that used to be filled with ultrasound photos. I just got to sleep in a luxurious king size bed with the man I loved, eat delicious food, and be together. We came home from dinner (one elevator ride away) and put on the thick, plush hotel robes and watched Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. It felt so nice to get out of our apartment and have a change of scenery.

My first major outing after I came home from the hospital was to a Heat playoff game. I’m extremely lucky that one of my closest friends has amazing work perks, and one of those is VERY good seats to events. Since we are both big Miami Heat fans, and they happened to be playing in New York against the Knicks, she got amazing tickets. As I mentioned last week, it wasn’t without its anxiety and pre-outing worries (do I even bother putting on makeup when I’ve only cried once today so far?) but overall, I had a blast. I was able to have a few hours where I could focus on the game and remember what it was like to be out with a friend having fun. We went out for a drink after, and I made it through many hours in a row with company and no tears. I knew I was hitting my maximum of breakdown-free social interaction, so I left before dinner, but it was fun to dress up and leave the house again.

Somehow, throughout these past few months I have been #BookedAndBusy with my braiding side hustle. I am honestly extremely impressed with myself that I have been able to manage any of the jobs I took. The administration of back-and-forth emails, communication of rates, deposits, and then showing up on a specific date and time to carry out a task? Herculean. But I did it. Time and time again. I have had more than 20 clients and events this year. Every time I finish a job, I feel not only a sense of accomplishment, but I am so proud of myself for doing something I used to do with ease “before.” There is nothing like the look in a young girl’s eyes when she sees her hair in ribbon braids for the first time. Again, this hasn’t been without hiccups. Braiding adults and children ALWAYS leads to questions about whether or not I have kids and comments about how good I am with kids. I usually have to do serious mental pre-work before any kid’s party. I braided a mother and daughter for a family photoshoot just 6 weeks after I left the hospital. The topic of kids came up when I was braiding the mom and I was prepared. I said, “we just recently went through a traumatic loss but hopefully someday.” It was a succinct way to tell the truth, and it cut off any follow-up questions. Unfortunately, later when the dad came home with the daughter, he hadn’t heard that conversation and he also asked, talking about how great I was with kids. When I left that client, I was extra proud of myself for being honest, for holding it together, and for being professional. I felt like it was a highlight because it was the first time I told the truth and I felt good about it.

Last week I mentioned how fraught our Jamaica vacation was, but I didn’t mention the main highlight: our anniversary. Chris has been a rock for me these past few months, but as some books say, a grieving person is a selfish person by necessity. I haven’t had the capacity to look after anyone but myself for many months. I really wanted to do something special for Chris for our anniversary, but I knew I didn’t have it in me to order, buy, and hide a unique gift. I didn’t even pack for our trip until 10 hours before. But somehow, I had the idea to email the hotel and have them orchestrate an anniversary surprise. With a few emails back and forth, I paid for them to have champagne and a bubble bath in our room when we arrived. They went above and beyond, with chocolate dipped fruit and rose petals everywhere. It was a big highlight for me before I finally felt like I had done something for someone else, and I wanted to make sure Chris knew how much I appreciated him.

The next week was my birthday. I won’t say my birthday itself was a highlight, I was a mess and I cried that morning after I went to the gym. But my parents decided to come into the city to visit that day, and Mother Nature showed off. My birthday can be extremely hot, but this year it was sunny and bearable! My sister hosted a Memorial Day BBQ, so my parents and husband and I walked up to my sister’s place along the Hudson River. It was so nice to show my parents my usual walking route, to be outside, and to have a brief distraction from the fact that I wasn’t 38 weeks pregnant. I always feel proud and happy when I can show people the little things I like about New York (hint: it’s not the crowds or the traffic).

Some of the MANY braids I’ve done this year.

Chris and I love to celebrate our many anniversaries. Ok, maybe only I love to celebrate them. For our wedding anniversary we were in Jamaica, but for our meetiversary Chris scheduled another surprise trip. This was his belated birthday present to me, and we went to Chicago for the weekend. The timing was perfect because it was also Father’s Day weekend, which we were happy to have a distraction from. The entire weekend was a highlight. We stayed in beautiful hotels, we ate AMAZING food, and again, the weather was absolutely perfect. We got to do our favorite activity together, Segways! Since we had done them a few times before, we wanted a unique experience, so we did a night tour and got to see fireworks. It was a blast (literally).

Slowly but surely, I’ve been getting myself back into the world. I’ve been trying to socialize in safe spaces, which is often with family. Many highlights have been just going on walks with my sister. Doing nails. Talking about normal things without having to act. Two weeks ago, I went to my great aunt’s 90th birthday party. It was so nice to see family. It was not without a breakdown in the middle of the luncheon (why did I bother wearing makeup!?) but overall, I was so happy to see family I hadn’t seen since before Covid. This past weekend, I went to Texas to visit my nephews and in-laws. It was so refreshing to spend a weekend with family having fun. Sitting in my apartment makes my mind wander, and it is usually not to bright places. In Texas, my brother-in-law, a two-time-purple-heart Army vet, took me to the shooting range because he said I needed to “let off some steam.” Concentrating on a target and learning a new skill left no room in my head for other thoughts. What a rush. I came home feeling lighter than I have in months. Being with family, going bowling, getting blizzards at Dairy Queen, I felt like I did last year.

Writing these blogs has been interesting for me, because I have had a chance to reflect on both the good and the bad. There have been both, and sometimes at the same time. I’ve been writing a lot, and I already know that the blog I will publish next week is a doozy of reality, and it’s not uplifting. But between those moments, there have been good ones. Sometimes I have to look harder for them now, but they’re there. Here’s hoping for many more bright spots and highlights in the future.

Long Legs and other Personal Problems, Miscellaneous

Eyebrow Microblading

October 3, 2022 3 Comments

Today I am continuing my series of “frequently asked questions.” My personal FAQ section is right here in this blog so I’m dedicating today’s blog to another one of the questions people ask me most frequently, “should I microblade my eyebrows?” If you missed the first in this series, “should I get laser hair removal?” go check that out now. I am not going to make you read through this whole post before finding out who I went to for my amazing brows. Her name is Purdie Baumann @purdiebrows and she is the absolute GOAT. Not only is she the best at her craft, she’s also an ex-Rockette. As in, Radio City. How cool is that??

I know you have a million questions, and I’m constantly recommending her, so let’s get down to the obvious question first:

“Should I get my eyebrows microbladed?”

Answer: Yes. Moving on. I’m kidding, of course I will tell you more. I have a long-standing hatred of my eyebrows. When I was VERY young, like 11 years old, I told my mom that I hated my eyebrows more than anything else on my body. I remember her saying that was dumb, because you could easily wax and shape them, and for the next 3.5 years I had an eyebrow sponsor: my mom. My mom had electrolysis as a teenager, so she understood the concept of unwanted hair and she was happy to pay this small amount to help me like my face more. Once I made my own babysitting money, I started paying for my own eyebrow waxes. There was a terrible moment around age 15 when I didn’t want to pay for the biweekly appointments and I had a genius idea to use the self-waxing strips from Walgreens instead. (Narrator: it was not genius). Long story short, I put one of them at the wrong angle and took off the tail end of one of my eyebrows. Ok, truth be told it was far more than the tail end. I was completely missing an eyebrow. My friends called me Mr. Clean. I had to wear eyebrow pencil for 2 months. As you may remember from previous blogs, I sweat a lot, so living in South Florida, the liner would start to drip. Mortifying. Before you ask, no, I do not have any throwback photos of this time. Thank God it was before smart phones and digital cameras. Fast forward to my 20’s in New York. Thank God waxing is extremely cheap. I always say there are 4 cheap things you can get in New York City: manicures, hotdogs, dollar slices, and eyebrow waxing/threading. This brings me to my next eyebrow discovery in approximately 2012: threading. I LOVED threading. I didn’t care as much anymore about the amount of eyebrow hair I had, but the shape. I really wanted a natural arch, but I didn’t have one. Threading could give me a more natural look, and it was less painful than waxing. Also, it was CHEAP! Like $7. The main problem with threading was that it was all about taking hair away to create a shape. Unfortunately, they were not able to add hair to make it look how I wanted. As I mentioned before, I didn’t have an arch and I wanted one! So I started to think about microblading. A few years later I finally took the plunge and I am SO happy I did!

“Does microblading hurt?”

No. Well, it didn’t hurt for me, but that’s because Purdie put a numbing gel on. If anything, it felt like little scratches on my face. The main uncomfortable part was a few days later when it was scabbed and kind of itchy, but I knew I was not supposed to scratch it. I was given a super moisturizing gel, kind of like Vaseline, to put on twice a day. This minimized the itching, and contrary to the warning I received from a friend who had it done somewhere else, it did not make my face look like a glazed donut! I should warn you, my same friend said it hurt a LOT when she got hers done. Maybe her person didn’t use a numbing cream. Make sure you ask about this in a consultation and read reviews!

“Will it look fake?”

This is a great question and the best answer I have is: it depends. Not if you go to Purdie! There are a few different kinds of microblading. Some are more of a shading (like if you were to fill in/color in your eyebrows), and personally I find those to look fake. It’s more of a solid tattoo. There is also the single brush stroke method, which is what I did, and I think it looks extremely natural. I actually get compliments on my brows all the time and people think they are natural! Be very careful to go to an artist whose work you like. The best way to know what your eyebrows will look like, is to look at previous work. This leads me to the next most popular question…

It looked way intense after session #1 but it faded and looked more and more natural over time.

“How do I find the right person?”

Instagram. I know that sounds crazy but as with any type of art (tattoos, hair color, painting, sculpture), you want to see the work before you commit to buying. This is especially true when the “art” you are buying is going to live on your face forever! I highly recommend looking at a person’s portfolio before booking an appointment. The easiest way to see this is on Instagram. Look at hundreds of before and afters. Find people with similar skin coloring and brow shape to you to see what the end result can be. Once you have the person you trust to do amazing work, the rest is easy because you can defer to their opinion. For example, when I went in, Purdie showed me a range of colors and asked what I wanted. I thought I wanted a very dark brown. She said she thought a medium and ash light color would look more natural. I told her that from the photos I saw, I trust her expertise and sure enough, she was right. The color does fade over time, so in my touch-up, we went a bit darker. I am so thrilled with how they came out and I know if I had gone with my original color choice, they would have been too dark for my coloring and would have looked fake, or like I was wearing makeup all the time. I love how my brows now almost look like I’m wearing natural brow makeup, but don’t look like I am wearing brow makeup and nothing else, if I have a fresh face.

“How much does it cost?”

Again, this depends. Every artist will create their own pricing structure, and it depends both on availability, demand, and market. New York is far more expensive than most places, but you can also find the best people! Personally, I paid $600 for a first appointment, and $200 for the touchup. I also tipped (of course). This was more than a year ago, so she may have adjusted her pricing. I know in New York, artists generally begin at $800-$1000. I went to Purdie’s studio in Jersey City, NJ and it was slightly cheaper, and honestly I would have gone to a much further state to get her skill level! #worthit Warning. There are Groupons out there. I mentioned raving about a Groupon for laser hair removal, for this, I’d warn against it. You want someone to take their time, you want them to be so good that they have a waiting list. If you are going to use a Groupon, PLEASE make sure you know someone personally who has had their brows done by that artist/salon! Remember this is permanent and on your face! Not the time to use a discount code.

“Don’t you have to get touch-ups all the time?”

This is a tough question for me to answer because it’s only been one year since I had my first appointment! Usually, you have an initial appointment and then a touch-up 2 months later. I had my first appointment in early October 2021, and my touch-up in early December 2021. I can tell that the ink has faded a bit when I look closely at my face, but you wouldn’t notice unless you looked with a magnifying mirror, or very very close-up. I prefer how they look now, extremely natural, although I may want a touch-up at some point in the future. I could not be happier with my decision! One note of warning, be careful not to get “trendy” eyebrows. Remember they will be there forever! If you love the SUPER bushy look of eyebrows right now, get normal ones microbladed and just fill them in with pencil temporarily. You’ll thank me in 2 years when the trends change again!

These photos are all after session #1. We did a few more fill-in brush strokes on the touch up 2 months later.

At this point I barely remember my eyebrows the way they were before. What a drastic improvement!

The side by side is mind-blowing. Look at that arch!

Miscellaneous

Online Shopping for My Mental Health

July 9, 2022 2 Comments

How are y’all doing? Depressed? Hopeless? In a constant state of “fuck my life?” Same, girl. But don’t worry, I have two solutions for you. They both involve your computer and a lot of money: online shopping, and booking that TRIP, baby!!!

Personally, I have found myself in a state of depression similar to where I was in April/May 2020. I’m talking peak Covid. Of course, I’m kidding, Covid has peaked multiple times higher since then, but y’all remember the feeling. Back in mid-2020, I found myself a fantastic coping mechanism. Why go to therapy when you can online shop?

You may remember the days in mid-2020. We were locked in our homes or we were staying with parents/relatives because we fled our own homes. We discovered TikTok and Tiger King. We were watching celebrities sing Beatles songs thinking that would fix the global pandemic. We were ruled by a crazy man who didn’t believe in science. It was a difficult time to be alive. Back then, I discovered many new hobbies that all involved spending money. I subscribed to FabFitFun. I bought 140 colors of nail dip powder. I bought a blow-up pool for the backyard. I was “thriving.”

Well, fast-forward two years and here we are again! If you are a woman, you wake up every day with less rights. If you are a person of color, you wake up every day with a twitter notification that the people who are employed to “protect and serve” have shot someone who looks like you 60 times in the back. If you don’t believe that Jesus is your savior, your religious “freedoms” are at risk constantly. Oh, and also, if you go to anywhere, to school, to the movies, to a parade, to the grocery store etc., you may get shot.

BUT DO NOT FRET. Online shopping is there to save you. Scared to go to the movie theater?? Just boot up that computer and type in jcrew.com. Scared you may never come home from the grocery store? Become a Maxxinista right from your couch. Afraid of having an ectopic pregnancy and then dying as a result of it? No worries, Farm Rio is having a sale!!

Last weekend, I was in peak depression, but then I remembered that I was going on a honeymoon in August. I needed new items!! “Needed.” I have no shorts that I love. So, I went to fashionnova.com. The serotonin boost was IMMEDIATE. But then I needed shirts and comfortable dresses so I hit up TJ Maxx online. And how can I forget adorable walkable sandals? DSW to the rescue. I am not sure if you think I’m kidding but I am not. I also may have finally pulled the trigger (pun intended) on two swimsuits from Summersalt that I have been coveting for years. THERE WAS A SALE.

Why do I love online shopping? I think it’s three things: predictability, excitement, and having something to look forward to. The predictability is great. I know there will be so many things to choose from, and they are right at my fingertips! Also, if you buy enough things, one or two of them are bound to fit. I also love the excitement of knowing I have packages coming. I open my USPS Informed Delivery email every morning, excited that the packages that are on the way are more than just toilet paper and dishwasher pods. It gives me something to wake up for in the morning! The real key is that you want predictability AND unpredictability. Surprise! I ordered so many things that I FORGOT one and I got an EXTRA package! Oh yes! The Tommy Bahama beach chairs with insulated pocket that fits 2 wine bottles! What a rush.

In case you have exhausted this form of serotonin rush, or your closet is completely packed to the gills, do not worry, I have another solution: BOOK A VACATION.

This seems self-explanatory but let me explain anyway. We wake up every day with the fear of death. This is literally what Drake was talking about when he coined the term YOLO. Book the trip, y’all. See new places. Visit new countries. Drink unlimited pina coladas on the beach. Go to a cabin with friends in the fall and spend every night drinking wine in the hot tub or around a fire pit. Use your vacation days. Or don’t! Work remotely and book that trip anyway.

I am trying to have something to look forward to every month. So far I’ve got a beach trip this week with my mom and sister. Then August I have a wedding in Boston and a honeymoon. Then September I have nothing but that’s just gearing up for October, when I will spend half the month in Australia. Then November, I have a work trip and I am trying to plan a Northeast cabin trip with friends. Then of course Thanksgiving when I’ll go see my parents and HOPEFULLY have the Macy’s Parade to look forward to. December of course will be Christmas with Chris’s family. It’s looking like a busy and fun rest of 2022!

I recommend planning constant vacations to give you a sense of predictability and something to look forward to. Extra bonus, you may need to do some online shopping for vacation-worthy outfits!

Miscellaneous

2021 – The year that was a decade

January 16, 2022 1 Comment

Is it just me, or does every year now feel like a decade? I sat down to try and begin a blog about 2021 and I got so overwhelmed I put it off for 2 weeks. I don’t want to bore you with all of the ups and downs – after all, we kind of went through them together. Remember allll the way back at the beginning of 2021 when the vaccines (that’s right, more than one! We had options!) were proved effective and safe? And we thought “wow, this pandemic is going to end! FINALLY!” And then fast-forward to a “decade” later, at the end of 2021, when we had yet another variant and went back to checking positivity percentages every day. Yea, that part kind of sucked. But the good part about living a decade within a single year is, we had some pockets of time that were great!

I usually do a year recap in the form of a bullet journal goals check in. Bad news, I kind of gave up on my bullet journal in June. Oops. Good news, the reason I gave up on it was because I was doing too many fun things and couldn’t keep up! More bad news, I started another bullet journal because I guess I’m a masochist.

Anyway, I was able to achieve a lot of my 2021 bullet journal goals, despite the fact that we lived on the cusp of anxiety attack every day of the year.

Health

Mental health? Precarious. Physical health: not too shabby!

I was able to complete 260 Peloton cycling classes, which was 60 more than my goal. Also, I completed 100 strength classes and 100 stretching classes on Peloton. Not to mention, I joined Orangetheory and I got 10,000 steps/day all but 9 days of the entire year. Remember those mental health walks from 2020? I’m still going on them. I walked a total of 4,986,793 steps.

Also, I achieved my goal of only ordering in food once or twice a week. I know that may seem easy, but in New York, not so much.

Here’s what I didn’t achieve:

Going to a dermatologist. I tried, but when I got there I discovered they didn’t take my insurance despite their assurances on the phone. Then I gave up because I was pissed.
Drinking water every day before coffee. We have limited joys now, coffee is one of them. I threw this goal down the drain in February.

Work

Honestly, I didn’t write down any work goals. And work has been… CRAZY. My main goals were to get through every week without screaming at any coworkers or shooting myself. I sort of succeeded.

Social Media

Well guys, I failed you again. Every year I try to publish 2 blogs/month and every year I fail. I posted 13 all year. I am going to try and do better! I also failed at getting 5,000 followers on my braiding Instagram, despite going viral for the NYC Marathon. I have been hovering JUST under 4,000 for 3 years now. *shrug*. This next year I’m focusing more on TikTok, but more on that in my next post.

Finance

Crazily, this is the main place where I achieved all of my goals. Despite my major return to international travel, I was able to max out my Roth IRA, reach my goal in my 403B, AND get to a net worth of 60K! This is huge considering the amount of student debt I am still carrying around. Not having to pay any student loans for the entire year definitely helped my finances.

Relationship

I’m still in one, so yay! He tells me he loves me every day, even after I yell at him 900 times for leaving his dishes in the sink. We didn’t go on one date/excursion per month, but Covid made that difficult at times. We almost made it, though! We did some at-home baking with a zoom class, we traveled to Aruba and France together, and best yet, we set a wedding date!! It’s soon. Yikes. Maybe I’ll write more about this, maybe I won’t. So far, I’m the worst future bride I’ve ever met.

Other

These miscellaneous goals were hit or miss. I DID see 3 Broadway shows. Impressive, considering Broadway wasn’t even open all year. I didn’t achieve 3 things on my NYC Bucket List. In fact, I didn’t even complete one of them. I tried to see the Nutcracker but the show was cancelled two days before because of Omicron. I did travel to three new countries (four if you count Monaco). I tried to call a friend once a month, but I really hate talking on the phone. I braided clients for a musical festival, a wedding, Halloween, and two races. Not too shabby considering I spent most of the year avoiding strangers’ faces.

2021 was a wild ride. It felt like 60% of the time, my butt was melded with my couch, and 40% of the time I was out of the country. We moved apartments, we went snorkeling and ATV-ing, Chris ordered from Amazon 100 million times, I did my nails 55 times, and collectively we got 6 new credit cards. 2022 is guaranteed to be a crazy year, too. We already have 4 weddings in the next 5 months, and we are hoping to start trying to have a baby (what?!?). Next week I’ll let you know what my 2022 goals are. Do you have any suggestions?

Miscellaneous

Braiding Marathon

November 18, 2021 2 Comments

I have written a lot on my blog about marathons. Half-marathon training, full marathon training, marathon-running. Even marathon-DRINKING. But this year, I’m writing about a whole different kind of marathon: a marathon of braiding.

Yes, you read that right. 10 days ago, I braided for 19 hours. 2 days, 21 people, 49 braids.

If you’ve been following my blog for a while, you know I started a side hustle in 2018 called Braid in Manhattan. Since my tiny little blog post in July of 2018, I’ve built a website, a Yelp page, a Tik Tok, and an Instagram with nearly 4,000 followers. But due to the unfortunate timing of Covid, I never really had a chance to scale my side hustle the way I wanted. The last thing I wanted to do over the last 18 months was be in close proximity to strangers’ faces for extended periods of time. But recently I started feeling a little better about contact, and I knew it was time to get back on my braiding game.

I had done a few events over the past season, a 10-year-old’s birthday party, a woman who was trying something new with her hair for the humidity, and a few people going to the Electric Zoo music festival. My goal was to try and get 8-10 clients for the New York Marathon. I felt better about braiding for the marathon because I got my Covid booster and I knew that 100% of the runners were vaccinated and/or recently tested.

Back in 2018 for the NYC Marathon, I worked at a braid bar event associated with a running fitness studio. It was 7 braiders and a whirlwind of fun. Since then, running and braiding hair have gone hand in hand. A professional runner, Colleen Quigley, started the “Fast Braid Friday” movement celebrating strong runners and associating them with braided hair. It’s a cross-cultural phenomenon about celebrating the concept of “look good, feel good” (and run fast). Plus, it’s functional because it keeps hair out of your face while racing. I started to get a following of runners on my Instagram, which is never what I intended with my brand. I started my company to focus on special event hairstyling, more boho and romantic looks. But it turns out that “athletic” braiding is a niche no one else seemed to be filling, and it turned out that I was quick and good at it!

With the lead-up to the marathon fast-approaching, I had 6 clients locked in and it was crunch time to meet my goal. Then, one Wednesday I was sitting on the couch watching Ted Lasso with Chris when my phone started BLOWING UP. I was getting emails. I was getting inquiries through my “contact me” page on my website. I was getting Instagram DMs. Facebook messages. I looked at Chris and I said … “I think I’m going viral.”

Sure enough, a woman who booked me for her own hair was in a Facebook group for people running the NYC Marathon, and someone posted asking for a hair recommendation. The woman who had booked me earlier in the day mentioned my company and BAM. The rest is history. I spent the next 3-4 days replying to people, scheduling on 45-minute intervals, and trying to organize the styles everyone wanted in spreadsheets. I was originally charging by time, but it got so impossible to organize that I ended up charging a flat fee toward the end. I needed an assistant!!

I had two weeks’ notice before the big event, and luckily I had all of my supplies with the exception of elastics. In earlyyy 2020, I was supposed to braid at a hair show with the brand StyleFactor, and the hair show was cancelled, but they’ve been sending me boxes of product every since! I have cases of edge control, which is generally used for more textured hair, but also works wonders to make styles stay through 26.2 miles. This stuff does not budge! I also have fitting foam and hair spray, all of which contribute to a super long-lasting style. I’ve had multiple people wear my racing styles for over a week!

I placed an order on Amazon for my favorite rubber band hair elastics, and I even reached out to my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE hair tie brand and asked if they wanted to collaborate with me. TIY (tie it yourself) is another woman-owned start-up and Andrea, the owner and founder, is the best. Sure enough, she said YES! She said I could take some photos and videos for her, and she would send me enough TIY’s to give to each one of my clients. The results were amazing. Also, she sent all orange, so it was easy to “spot the knots” throughout the race course, which is their motto.

The Friday before the marathon, I got to work. I had a client from Germany. From Seattle. From Philadelphia. From Austin. From Boston. From Naples. People running with their friends they met in online Facebook groups. People running with their husbands they met in running clubs. People running with Type 1 Diabetes who were running for a charity to support Diabetes research. People running for charities to support mental health support for family members of people with cancer. People running with run clubs. People running their first marathons. And one person running their final (6!) world major marathon. The stories were all so incredibly inspiring.

I wrote to all of the women who I braided and they have been writing reviews on my Yelp and Facebook, but better yet, they’ve been sending me all of their post-race medal photos in their braids and I am just KVELLING with pride.

Was standing for 19 hours difficult? Yes. Was my back killing me because I am ancient-years-old? Also, yes. But was I enthralled all weekend listening to the stories of women from around the world who waited 2 years to run the streets of my home city??? Also YES. It ALMOST makes me want to run a marathon again. ALMOST. But even more so, it makes me want to travel to another marathon to braid more hair! Where should I go next?? Berlin? Chicago? Boston?

Miscellaneous

Vaxxed and Relaxxed (Soon!)

April 26, 2021 2 Comments

I’M FULLY VACCINATED! Let the world tour begin. But for real, I have been stalking flights basically daily since my 2-weeks-from-2^nd-vax-mark. As they say on Instagram… vaxxed and waxed baby!!! Except I got laser hair removal, but, same diff.

I was vaccinated at the Javits Center both times #TeamPfizer. I’ve gone through a lot of emotions at Javits. That seems like a weird thing to say about a convention center, but it’s true. The first time I went there was for the Barbri practice Bar exam. I was terrified. The second time was for the actual Bar Exam. Terrified doesn’t even begin to describe the emotions. Petrified is more like it. Then, I went back in 2019 for the NYC Marathon Expo. I was terrified again, but also excited. I had a little bit of PTSD from the Bar. But this time, for the very first time, I wasn’t scared at all. I was RELIEVED. It’s been *a year*, I think we can all agree. After receiving the vaccine, I went to a waiting area for a few minutes where they had a Wall of Thanks for us to write notes to thank anyone and everyone who made this day possible. And that’s when it really hit me how lucky I really am. None of my family or friends died. I didn’t lose my job. I have always had enough food. Millions of people cannot say the same. So I am relieved, but I am also so incredibly grateful. For the healthcare workers, the grocery store employees, the national guard who mobilized to make it a smooth experience, to the politicians who have made it possible for nearly 15 MILLION New Yorkers to have already been vaccinated. And for the SCIENTISTS.

The National Guard had everything SO well-organized.

For a state as large as New York, it’s pretty miraculous that it’s not even May, but 46% of our population has had at least one shot, and 32% of us are fully vaccinated. I’m a bit salty that they now have walk-in appointments at the Natural History Museum because… um, HOW COOL IS THAT??? And my friend in Florida got vaccinated at Publix, where getting vaccines is a pleasure (IYKYK). I kind of wish I got a PubSub (chicken tenders of course) along with my vax, but beggars can’t be choosers.

And now, the world is my oyster! Not exactly, because like, Canada is still closed. And Australia has a 2-week quarantine. And the EU is… not really here for Americans just yet. However, news broke yesterday that they will welcome us back soon!

I know different people are comfortable with different levels of things even if they are vaccinated. I’m still wearing two masks to the grocery store. And I’m not gonna lie, I’m still wary of crowds and groups. I haven’t even dined inside yet! But If I double mask on a plane and I’m double vaxxed, I am ready to GTFO of New York. I have officially booked 2 trips and a third is on the way! My parents haven’t traveled anywhere yet, but I’ve realized that when I call the home phone line now, there isn’t always someone there to pick up! It’s been over a year since that has been the case.

My mom and I canceled a trip last year because of Covid, and I can’t wait to travel somewhere with her again. But first, I’m actually going to their house for a week! Working from home has its perks, as I mentioned last week. And then… who knows!? I have a 4-day weekend for Shavuot (thanks, #JewJob). I have a 4-day weekend for Memorial Day/My Birthday. I booked a trip to Aruba with Chris in June. We are ready to relax in a place that is not our home. The real question is… will my Peloton miss me? More on my fav quarantine purchase later this week.

For now… where are you going first? Your parents’ house? To see your new grandkids? Cancun? Let me know in the comments.

Miscellaneous

Covid Anniversary

March 2, 2021 1 Comment

It’s March! Happy Anniversary… to Covid! Of course, I am being facetious. It has been a horrific year and guess what? It’s not getting better. If you were expecting a fun and light blog, then you should close this and go to someone else’s blog because this post is going to be truthful and the truth is… THIS SUCKS Y’ALL.

Monday was the first day of March and I had myself a cute little breakdown. Anyone else? If you ask me, things are worse now than they were.

First of all, the burnout is REAL. Every additional day I live like this is exponentially worse. It’s like compound interest but way less fun because I am not getting rich.

Second of all, seeing people on social media still just going about their business like things are fine is THE ABSOLUTE WORST.

Third of all, the virus is, quite literally, worse! 6 months ago, the numbers were low, the virus “couldn’t pass through a mask” so we went about our business at the grocery store or on a walk, with a single mask. Just one! There were stories about full hair salons being spared from transmission by a measly fabric mask.

Now, with new strains of the virus every few weeks, to leave the house I suit up like a space man. I put on a huge coat (thanks SNOWPOCOLYSE 2021) and an N95, and a cotton mask on top of that. And boots. Because endless winter is also a thing, I guess. I feel like I should be wearing goggles, too, but I just can’t.

“BUT DON’T YOU HAVE HOPE?? Things have gotten better! Things are opening up! There’s a vaccine! Multiple!” – People with Hope

Let me tell you about the two groups of people who have hope:

The vaccinated people. Yep, you. I’m not shaming you for having the vaccine. It is awesome. Am I jealous? Of course! But also, sir/ma’am, that is why you have hope. Because for YOU, it is better. You are “safe.” I am not. I also have very little hope of getting the vaccine soon. Sure, Biden says we will have enough supply by the end of May. But by the time they actually figure out supply chain issues and coordinated vaccinations, it will be months after that. Then wait another month for the second shot (or maybe we all get J&J), and then wait another two weeks until it actually becomes effective. We are looking at July at best. And I highly, highly doubt that. Not to mention how long it will be until things like Broadway shows open again.
The people who have let their guard down. I see you. Going to running clubs “outside because it’s safe” in groups of 8+ people with NO MASKS. I see you going to Mexico and Antigua, because you “got tested first.” I see you traveling to see family members because you haven’t seen them in a long time. None of us have! I see you celebrating a coworker’s birthday with a “small group” of 7 people at a Hibachi table. I see you, and I’m judging you. But also, I have come to terms with the fact that not everyone is taking the virus as seriously as I have. It’s been that way from the jump. The thing I hate about this particular group, however, is the fact that they have hope. They say, “things are getting better!” and couple it with this behavior. Things are NOT in fact getting better, you are just getting more lackadaisical about protocol. I’m glad you aren’t burned out anymore, but it’s only because you’re not actually being safe anymore.

Here’s another reason why I’ve been much more depressed this month versus 2 months ago: people have started to make plans, or expect you to make plans. The people making these plans are the same ones in groups 1 and 2 above. The “things will definitely be better by June” crowd. Well guess what, they probably won’t. And I refuse to make plans for June because it’s too dang depressing.

Here’s a great example. My mom, love her, wanted to put a zoom event on the calendar for the last week of June. I had three options:

Say no. I will probably be vaccinated then and the second I can travel safely again, I am OUT OF HERE.
Say yes. This sh*t will be going on FOREVER so may as well just zoom until the end of time. But I already zoom 8 hours a day EVERY SINGLE DAY so that is VERY depressing.
Not answer because I am pretty sure the real situation will be #2 and I just cannot wrap my head around doing this for many more months.

Guess which option I took?

Anyway, y’all, I miss my friends.

I have no hope.

The end.

Long Legs and other Personal Problems, Miscellaneous

2020 Recap and Accomplishments

January 21, 2021 4 Comments

It’s January, which means RESOLUTION TIME!! Now, I understand it’s January 21^st so I’m a bit behind, but if you’ve been following along for a while, you’d know I actually hate resolutions. What I do love, is goal-setting. In the past few years, I’ve been keeping a list of goals in my bullet journal. Flipping to them periodically has helped keep me focused.

Unfortunately approximately 80% of my 2020 goals were unachievable because, well… ya know. Did I work out at 10 new fitness studios? No. Did I attend 100 bootcamp classes? No. Did I visit 4 new countries? Nope, not even one. Did I spend less than $400 on buying lunch for work? Sorta… because I didn’t actually GO to work for 5/6 of the year.

Anyway, I prefer not to talk about all of the goals I didn’t achieve. Yesterday was the beginning of a fresh start for our nation and for me. We are now focused on positivity. Therefore, I’d like to recap some of the amazing moments and achievements from 2020. Not all were planned, but I’m still proud of them! I invite you all to celebrate your 2020 accomplishments, big and small.

I Got Promoted

This is huge! Technically, I got the promotion in 2019, but my boss retired at the beginning of 2020 and I took on the reigns of the entire department alone. If you didn’t know, I work in career services so to say that my job was tough during 2020 when EVERYONE was seeking work and facing furloughs and pay cuts? Well, that would be the understatement of the century. It was hard. There were days when I felt 100 hours behind. But I did it! I was even rewarded with a raise.

I Got Engaged

Again, HUGE. Did we pick a date yet? No. Are we planning a wedding at all? Also no. Does it make living in a 500 square foot apartment with my fiancé any easier? No again. But I do have a gorgeous rock on my hand, and it looks FABULOUS in photos. Sometimes I look at it sparkling in the fluorescent lights and it makes me smile.

I Learned How to Do My Own Manicures

This may not be on par with the engagement and promotion, but it’s pretty darn cool. No one ever sees them IRL, but I do get comments about them sometimes on Zoom. Also, I started a 4^th Instagram for my nail photos, ManisInManhattan. I was looking for some home hobbies, and I found one plus I learned a new skill. It’ll probably save me money someday… after the initial investment of buying all the supplies.

I Achieved Net Zero

Speaking of saving money, somehow I achieved Net Zero. This is a massive feat if you know anything about my student loans. Not only did I achieve Net Zero, I surpassed it by many many miles. How? By barely spending any money. Getting a promotion. Not eating out. Not traveling. Not paying student loans thanks to Covid forbearance. Compound interest in my 401K (and maxing it out for the very first time!). Sure, I wish I had been traveling and eating at restaurants instead of saving money. But since I couldn’t, I am excited to have a much bigger pot for compound interest for the coming years.

I Kept Up with My Bullet Journal

In 2018 I gave up and swore off my Bujo. Then I tried it again in 2019 and liked it a bit more but also slacked. In 2020, I thought it was important to keep up with journaling for my sanity, to mark the difference in days, the passage of time, the seemingly endless weeks and months. Now, I appreciate my own tenacity because someday I’ll be able to look back on this crazy year and understand my headspace. I wasn’t perfect 100% of the time. Sometimes a week went by when I didn’t write at all. But in general, I kept up and made it 148 pages to December 31^st. Not only did I use it as a journal, but it let me track lots of stuff like these last four achievements.

I Published 26 Blogs

My goal was historically 2/month, so I achieved that. Also, it was not easy to write blogs when you DID NOTHING AND STAYED INSIDE EVERY DAY. Hopefully I didn’t bore you guys too much. Mommy, are you still there? Are you my only follower?

Some weeks I kinda fell behind, but that’s ok!

I Watched Movies I Had Wanted to See

Last year, I started the year with a massive list of movies to watch in my Bullet Journal. When I heard we were going to quarantine, I ordered a DVD player from Amazon, and I took 4 DVDs out from the library. I even brought them with me to Texas. I slowly made it through 84 new movies. That’s right, 84. I got through many on my list, like the Godfather, Casablanca, One Child Nation, Steel Magnolias, Frozen, and My Best Friend’s Wedding. And also watched some movies I didn’t plan to watch but loved nonetheless, like Ugly Dolls, The Princess and the Frog, The Social Dilemma, and 21 Jump Street.

My to-watch list. Look at all those check marks.

I Read 61 Books

That’s right guys, SIXTY ONE. 20,665 pages according to Goodreads. Back in 2018, I set myself a goal to read 4 non-fiction books a year. In 2020 I read 14! I also discovered audiobooks. I mean, I knew what they were before 2020, but I was never able to focus on them. In 2020, I took so many long walks that audiobooks were the perfect way to escape my endless thoughts and Twitter doomscrolling. I absolutely love them now and changed my reading tracker for this year in my bullet journal to track these.

Note, one book is missing from here from March, woops! (It was I Like to Watch and it was terrible)

I Discovered New Ways to Move My Body

It’s no secret I like to work out. Unfortunately, my two workouts of choice were teaching Spin classes and attending group bootcamp classes. Both of these were not options in quarantine. So, I had to adjust. First, my mindset. Maybe one day I couldn’t motivate myself to do a burpee. Ok, NO days I could motivate myself to do a burpee. But at least I could go for an hour-long walk. I got to know the Texas subdivision very well. I listened to podcasts. I listened to music. I zoned out. According to my Fitbit, I only didn’t make it to 10,000 steps/day 14 days all year! And 6 of those days were pre-Covid! That means I walked 10K+ steps 352/366 days. 96% of the year. If you don’t count the days pre-Covid, it’s 285/293… 97%! I walked a LOT. 5,019,509 steps according to my Fitbit. Five million, nineteen thousand, five hundred and nine.

I also danced. I discovered the freedom of moving my body to music. Dancing like no one was watching because… no one was. Well, Chris’s nephews sometimes but they already thought I was crazy. I did so much dance cardio; it became my escape. I’m moving next week, and I’m not sure if I’ll be able to continue my dancing because I’ll officially have downstairs neighbors, but I’ll keep you posted. I did buy a Peloton so I’ll have to tell you all about that, too!

So many things to blog about. The Peloton, the move, the new apartment, maybe I’ll beat my 26-blog-post record.

What did you all achieve in 2020? Anything unexpected? New skills? Tell me in the comments!

Miscellaneous

NYE Party in the Living Room

January 4, 2021 2 Comments

HAPPY NEW YEAR!! We were all looking forward to 2021, and I’m hopeful it will be better than last year. However, we were still stuck at home for New Year’s Eve. TBH I hate NYE. It’s always overhyped and ends up being worse than you imagined. It ends in fights with your significant other, sloppy drunks, vomiting, fried food indulging, and beginning the new year with a hangover. Not my favorite. If you’ve been following for a while, you know I MUCH prefer Practice New Year’s Eve. It leaves my real NYE open to run races in the below-freezing temps. But none of that was happening this year. No parties, no races, etc. Personally, we didn’t do anything festive for Thanksgiving or Christmas. There was no turkey cooking, no tree in our living room or twinkling lights. I was canceled from the Macy’s Parade.

I wanted to do SOMETHING for New Year’s Eve. I started brainstorming my favorite parts of the holiday. Watching Rockin’ New Year’s Eve on tv (RIP Dick Clark) with friends, eating lots of hors-oeuvres that are fried (shoutout pigs in a blanket), drinking yummy drinks, kissing at midnight, wearing sequins and taking lots of photos. When I reflected on my favorite things, I realized the only thing we COULDN’T do was see friends. So, I set about to make the rest of those things happen.

First, a stop at Trader Joes for many, many fried frozen appetizers. Unfortunately, they were out of pigs in a blanket, but I got truffle flatbread, mozzarella sticks, buffalo chicken popovers, spanakopita, and LOTS of dips. Not to mention the makings of a charcuterie board. After about $70 in food, I figured it was probably enough for 2 people. Spoiler alert, we only ate about 20% of that food. But it was fun to have choices. And leftovers.

Pandemic Food Spread, never far from hand sanitizer

Next stop, Party City. I only came up with this idea last-minute, so I went to Party City on December 30^th. It was pretty picked over. It seemed I was not the only person with this idea for an at-home party. I picked up a few things that were leftover, including a hat that was broken so they gave it to me for $2.50. SCORE. It was good as new with some hot glue gun magic. When I found an over-the-door streamer thingy, I knew it would make the perfect backdrop for my “photobooth.” They only had blowers in packages of 24 or more left, which gave me hope that people were not having large gatherings. I waited on the blowers with hopes that I could buy some off the street, in addition to more photobooth props, and I was right! The morning of December 31^st, I was first at the table of vendors on the corner, so I got my first pick of pre-packaged and individually wrapped glasses, blowers, 2021 masks, poppers etc. I was almost ready. All I needed was an outfit.

I wanted to take full advantage of our stay-at-home NYE and wear an outfit I’d never wear out. First, a dress that barely covered my bum. It was 100% sequins, which I’d totally wear out. But it was too short to dance comfortably in. Perfect for photos and couch-eating. Next, shoes. In New York, you always need shoes you can walk in. I have thrown away most of my heels. But I kept these crazy knee-high boots because I couldn’t part with them. They live in a bin deep in the recesses under my bed. They were the perfect addition to my outfit. It’s only 9 steps from my bedroom to the kitchen/photobooth. Don’t ask how I know this. I walk this route often. I could do 9 steps in these boots. Spoiler alert again, I switched into slippers at 10:30 pm.

And to top off my outfit: LIPSTICK!! If you live in New York, you know why this is in capital letters. I haven’t left my house without a mask in months. So, lipstick is not something in rotation. Makeup in general, but definitely lipstick. But it seemed like a festive addition to this not-opening-my-front-door outfit. Chris and I got ready separately so we could surprise each other with our outfits. He came out in a very snazzy suit freshly shaved.

We took a LOT of photos. I drank four berry Moscow mules and added as much vodka as I wanted. And spent $0 on booze. I sat on the couch, danced around, counted down, and got my midnight kiss. First (but not last) engaged New Year! How did you guys spend your evening? Did you dress up or stay in sweats? And most importantly… which of you guys bought all the TJ’s pigs in a blanket??

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