Over the past few weeks I have said yes to something that was originally easy to say "yes" to, but then because something that I wanted to exclaim "NO!" to. That something is unemployment. When I first finished my internship at the end of October I was happy to have free time to do what I please. Sleeping in had only been a weekend option for most of the summer, so saying "yes" to hitting the snooze button felt like heaven for a while. Then things started to change. After returning from my road trip with the What Now Wanderers the fact that I was unemployed really hit me. I started to worry about money and paying bills and I became anxious about the whole not-having-a-job thing. I had high hopes prior to the road trip that someone along the way would surely offer me a high paying executive job. When I returned home with no job offers and a case of wanderlust much more severe than any that I had ever experienced before, I started to feel depressed. I didn't think that I had enough money to get up and go on an exotic trip across the ocean and I started spending hours a day online searching and applying for jobs. I heard back from a few, but nothing came of it. To help keep me going, I started doing odd jobs. From pumpkin carving to working at the polls - I was doing it all.
I took a break from job searching to go to yet another talk show taping - this time The Rachael Ray Show. I have been to a taping of the show before and must say that it's my favorite so far. Rachael Ray ALWAYS sends you on your way with loads of goodies. At this taping I got two trail mix snacks for Snack of the Day (we were a part of two different tapings, which meant two snacks!) and I won some delectable truffles for being willing to go up in front of the rest of the audience and answer a few questions. I even got to say hi to Rachael Ray while I was up there!
Outside the show
One of the many Rachael Ray photos inside the studio
When unemployment started to get the best of me, I headed for a weekend at my Grandma's house to unwind and reflect on my current situation. While there, my cousin Carly talked me into saying "yes" to dying my hair - for the first time EVER! I was really nervous about it, even though I was only planning to dye it a shade or two lighter than my natural color. Carly assured me that I was in good hands (she is the renown hair dyer among her friends) and after seeing the results, I knew that she was right. She did a great job! Although no many people (including myself sometimes) have noticed the change, I still see my first hair dying experience as a big step! It helped me to realize that hair is just hair - it won't make or break you and it is always good for me to trust someone else with something that I care about. It helps to build trust between that other person and myself! I would definitely entrust my hair to Carly again.
Here's my hair before... After picture to come
I came back from my Grandma's feeling refreshed and hopeful. That was this past weekend. I must admit that this past week of unemployment has been the most balanced. Rather than spending all of my time at home, I have made a conscious effort to go out and do things this past week. Monday I relaxed and did a few things around the house. Tuesday night I went to a fun event hosted by my local chapter of The American Liver Foundation. I designed a poster for their "Flavors Of..." event and was invited to attend the event for free! I enjoyed a wonderful cocktail hour and got to be a seat filler for a little while (I got so far as soup and then was politely kicked out upon the arrival of my seat's rightful owner).Cool (literally) ice sculpture at the event
Fancy soup
Me and Marla, the woman I worked with to design the poster
Wednesday I had to drop off some ornaments that I had decorated for the ice cream shop that I used to work for. They were decorating a tree for our neighborhood Junior League's Enchanted Forest. It was a lot of fun to decorate the ornaments and it helped to remind me just how much I love doing craft projects! Okay, so maybe I never forgot how much I loved being a crafter... but I did say "no" to a lot of craft projects over the summer because of lack of time due to my internship. Now that I'm unemployed, I can say "yes" to crafts as much as my heart desires!
Finished bulbs
After dropping off the ornaments, I went to apply for a seasonal job at Kate's Paperie - the perfect place for someone interested in making money doing crafts to work.
Thursday I traveled to New York with Sarah and Lauren to conduct our final interview for Roadtrip Nation. Lauren wasn't feeling up to it, but Sarah and I decided to get up before sunrise to go to The Today Show. Sarah and I both love the show and have always wanted to be one of those people waving behind Al Roker's head.
We didn't just stand behind Al Roker... Sarah got to stand with him for this picture!
This picture isn't very good, but that's Tony Bennett!
Okay, so this dog wasn't on the show, but isn't he so cute?!
Thursday I traveled to New York with Sarah and Lauren to conduct our final interview for Roadtrip Nation. Lauren wasn't feeling up to it, but Sarah and I decided to get up before sunrise to go to The Today Show. Sarah and I both love the show and have always wanted to be one of those people waving behind Al Roker's head.
We got on camera! (not just on my camera...)
We had a variety of signs. The one that I'm holding says "I SKIPPED UNEMPLOYMENT TO BE HERE"
We had a variety of signs. The one that I'm holding says "I SKIPPED UNEMPLOYMENT TO BE HERE"
We didn't just stand behind Al Roker... Sarah got to stand with him for this picture!
This picture isn't very good, but that's Tony Bennett!
Okay, so this dog wasn't on the show, but isn't he so cute?!
After the show, Sarah and I met up with Lauren and headed over to interview Deb from Smitten Kitchen. She makes all sorts of great food from her apartment and blogs about what she makes. Her blog has become so popular that she was able to quit her job and dedicate all of her time to it! We've been back from the road trip now for about three weeks, so we were all a little rusty when it came to using the camera. Once we got reacquainted with our old friend the camera, our interview went off perfectly. Deb was so helpful and had so much insight to share about the confusion transition from college to the real world.
Friday I went to The Enchanted Forest to help set up the ice cream tree, which I sadly do not have a picture of. The rest of the day I got ready for a craft fair that I had signed up for on Saturday. I spent the day making greeting cards and knitting hats for the event. On Saturday morning I got up earlier than usual (meaning 8am or so...) and packed up my things to go to the fair. I have wanted to be a vendor at a craft fair for a while now, but have just put it off over and over again. This time I had no excuse. With the power of saying "yes" to whatever it is that I am interested in doing and the freedom of being unemployed with a little cash saved up to spend however I'd like, I was able to set up for a few hours and sell some of the items that I've made. I shared a table with Sarah (who sold hats to benefit Kids in Crisis - the non-profit that she worlds for) and her sister (who sold some of her beautiful and delicious baked goods) and though I didn't make a killing selling my items at it, overall the event was a really fun. We got to mingle with a lot of different people from the area and I had the chance to visit my old pre-school stomping grounds (the craft fair was held at the church that used to house Tiny Tots - my pre-school alma mater).
Our table
Happy crafters
My favorite hat that I made
Friday I went to The Enchanted Forest to help set up the ice cream tree, which I sadly do not have a picture of. The rest of the day I got ready for a craft fair that I had signed up for on Saturday. I spent the day making greeting cards and knitting hats for the event. On Saturday morning I got up earlier than usual (meaning 8am or so...) and packed up my things to go to the fair. I have wanted to be a vendor at a craft fair for a while now, but have just put it off over and over again. This time I had no excuse. With the power of saying "yes" to whatever it is that I am interested in doing and the freedom of being unemployed with a little cash saved up to spend however I'd like, I was able to set up for a few hours and sell some of the items that I've made. I shared a table with Sarah (who sold hats to benefit Kids in Crisis - the non-profit that she worlds for) and her sister (who sold some of her beautiful and delicious baked goods) and though I didn't make a killing selling my items at it, overall the event was a really fun. We got to mingle with a lot of different people from the area and I had the chance to visit my old pre-school stomping grounds (the craft fair was held at the church that used to house Tiny Tots - my pre-school alma mater).
Our table
Happy crafters
My favorite hat that I made
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