Taylor, the Latte Boy

Posted on November 5, 2015 by 4evamaria

Hello everyone!

I must confess. There is a new man in my life. His name is Taylor.

He is my Nespresso machine.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, this is blog post where I talk all about my unnatural obsession with my coffee machine.

Coffee is amazing, so don’t judge me.

Taylor isn’t just any coffee machine, he is the most amazing espresso machine. Pair him with the aerocino milk frother, and you have instant lattes, macchiatos, and cappuccinos. Given that I’m all kinds of loopy lately, this little machine has been a lifesaver. I first experienced what I like to call “push-button espresso” on a whim, while walking through a Williams Sonoma store. I was offered a sample from a dubious looking little machine, and, while highly skeptical, I accepted a little cup topped with foam. The thought of merely pushing two buttons and instantly having a perfect cappuccino with no mess fascinated me. Afterwards, I quite literally thought about that machine for years. Of course, I stopped myself from impulse purchasing one due to the hefty price tag, and the fact that I would probably abuse it to no end. I saw myself sitting in my kitchen, mixing lattes directly into my mouth. And that’s how Eva would die of caffeine overdose. (It’s funny, when you live alone, you find your mind wandering to how you might die doing something horribly embarrassing, like drowning yourself in espresso or doing jumping-jacks in the shower…) Either that or I would become the most obnoxious person on earth, vibrating around and subsisting only on cappuccinos for sustenance.

Luckily, none of those things have happened to me (yet). I’ve been exercising self-restraint with my Nespresso. Sure, there are some days where I make two lattes, but, hey! It’s still less expensive than a daily Starbucks habit! I really can’t say enough great things about it- it couldn’t be easier to use, and there is zero cleanup aside from a quick rinse here and there. I currently own the Pixie Clips model, which features removable, colored side panels for horribly indecisive people like myself. Or, if you’re the kind of person who is intensely into decorating, you now have the option of making your espresso machine match your wooden cabinets or tiling. The entire set-up included large sample packs of the many Nespresso “flavors” they offer (grand crus, if you’re feeling particularly fancy), as well as a recipe book of potential drinks. Any recipe that involves me putting a scoop of ice cream into my morning coffee is A-OK in my book. In all, this company takes its coffee quite seriously. Luckily, Taylor’s in good company in my home.

I think we’ll have a long and happy life together.

EVA ♥

All Work And…

Posted on October 27, 2015 by 4evamaria

Hello everyone!

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. Isn’t that the saying? I’m pretty sure there’s a second part to that, about all play and no work, but, really, who does that?

(No, seriously, if you know how to do that please let me know.)

On the contrary, I’ve found myself doing what feels like utterly nothing lately, which is incredibly unlike me. I’m one of those strange people who likes being busy quite literally all the time. I work 6 days a week with little complaint because I get to work in a field I absolutely love. Unfortunately, this leaves me with very little time to do much else. The last few weeks, when the end of the work day rolled around, you could most likely find me doing this:

jennaplank

In various places around my apartment. Just…planking.

Sometimes it would be planking in the bath, sometimes I decided to plank while staring at my phone, or while watching a Harry Potter marathon on TV, but that’s about as exciting as it got. I literally did nothing, just because it felt like the most appropriate thing to do at the time. So, why share this embarrassing state of events? Well, I always like to think that it helps to feel like you’re never alone. I’m sure some of you, dear readers, could out-plank me any day. Heck, even while I was poking around online, looking for fantastic gif-inspiration, I came across The Broke Millenial’s blog on Burnout. See! We’re definitely not alone. Sometimes you just need to come home and have some night cheese, like Liz Lemon! Or take naps on a Saturday, for no reason.

At first, I began to think that there was something legitimately wrong with me. I would perpetually drink coffee throughout the day to keep me going, and then come home and crash at night. The kind of crashing where you fall asleep upright with all the lights in your house on, still wearing a face full of makeup. Throw in an ibuprofen or two and you had a typical Wednesday for me.

So how do you, dear readers, handle this proverbial “burnout”? This past Saturday, I finally decided to unleash my inner Karen Walker and headed outside of my apartment at night in pursuit of a cocktail. I spent some time with a friend of mine and engaged in people browsing, as you might call it.

This certainly jolted me awake, albeit while ironically staying out much later than I should have. Now, I wouldn’t credit one cocktail with giving me my spark back. Although it’s not the most deep wisdom I can impart on you, sometimes you really do need those moment of doing absolutely nothing. Those moments might even spread over the span of several days. It’s very much the small things I started doing for myself that helped me get back, both literally and figuratively, on my feet. I let myself have that extra cup of coffee, I made time to read that silly paperback, and spent a Saturday night in my pajamas painting my nails. Most of all, I didn’t let myself feel badly about it. Sure, sometimes that voice in your head just wants to point out all the things you’ve been doing wrong, or all the things you should be doing- don’t let it. I’m here to tell you it’s stupid and it needs to get over itself. You can take a nap today, and come back with a vengeance tomorrow. Things aren’t always going to go the way you imagined, but you’re doing your best. After all, in the words of Mindy Kaling:

Image source: giphy

Until next time!

EVA♥

Just a Smile

Posted on October 13, 2015 by 4evamaria

Hello everyone!

Today, I wanted to write about something that has preoccupied me for some time. To be completely honest, I’ve been a bit frightened to publish this particular post, because it focuses on something I’ve been incredibly self-conscious about for a really, really long time: my teeth.

To make a long story short, when I was seven I slipped and fell while dancing on my great aunt’s slick kitchen floor in Austria, knocking one of my front teeth completely out. Approximately 3 years later, I fell again, and damaged the neighboring tooth. Since then, I’ve spent over 5 years in braces, had two root canals, two tissue graft surgeries, a tooth extraction, a bone graft, and a new tooth implanted. Between that and interesting genetics that left me with an additional missing tooth, I’ve never been entirely happy with my smile. It’s always been far from perfect, and, on top of that, I’ve spent the last 10 years of my life living with what I jokingly referred to as my “party trick” tooth:

And a smile that looked like this:

To say I was self-conscious about it was an understatement.

Even with the fake teeth, I hated looking at photos of myself and seeing the gap and mismatched color of my teeth. I never took the retainer out of my mouth, except to sleep, and, even then, only my good friends had seen me entirely without it. When I traveled, or had an important event, I lived in fear that the retainer would break, and that I would suddenly be without a tooth. It’s quite literally the stuff of nightmares, having your teeth falling out of your head. When I was living with my college roommates, I broke my retainer, or flipper as it’s often called, eating a piece of pizza. I knew I had wonderful friends when, between getting me to laugh uncontrollably in the midst of a rather horrifying situation, they were fully prepared to trek to the local drugstore on their bikes to buy me a tube of Fixodent until I made it to the dentist. They also indulged me when I began to insist that I be photographed from one particular side, as I joked “That’s the side with all my real teeth!”

After years of surgeries and continuous poking around in my mouth, I was both tired and slightly afraid to step into another dentist’s office. My smile has always been a work in progress, but, recently I decided to be both more proactive and optimistic, and go back to the dentist. It’s still a work in progress, but now my smile looks like this:

(Forgive the grainy, post-work-out photo. Look at that smile!)

I had always hoped that one day that my smile would be better. It seems like such a trivial thing, really. I feel fortunate for having so many positive things in my life, on some days, having perfect teeth seemed almost too much to ask. When I was handed the mirror at the end of my most recent dentist appointment, I was startled, and perhaps not in a good way. I had, for so long, resigned myself to the fact that I was the girl who had two fake, gappy, mismatched teeth. I suddenly happy and slightly uncomfortable with my new look, all at the same time. Now that I’ve gotten a little more used to them, I couldn’t be happier. I still have quite a way to go over the next few months, and I’ll keep documenting my progress. In the meantime, I have plenty to smile about.

EVA♥

Washington D.C. Adventures!

Posted on October 7, 2015 by 4evamaria

Hello dear readers!

It’s been far too long since I’ve posted on Watch Me Juggle. I’ve missed it altogether too much.

Having been out and about quite a bit lately, you would think I would always be itching to post about my latest adventures. But, in a strange way, once I’ve forced everyone to look at all of my vacation photos, then it feels truly over. Then again, the only thing that remedies that is going on more adventures, right?

Despite being the consummate California girl, I’ve always wanted to explore more of the U.S. I’ve recently noticed that I pretty much wander off of the West Coast only to leave the states completely, and that had to change sooner or later. So, when the opportunity presented itself to visit a good friend Devyn in Maryland, I had to go. We only had a few days, but we managed to hit two states, three major cities, and walked and shopped over 12 miles, taking breaks for cocktails and ogling at monuments. We saw and did all the things, as I like to say!

We started off the trip with homemade ebelskivers, and a brunch cocktail made with local donut peach cider, spiced rum, and sparkling water (which was obviously delicious). Since getting out of the army, my friend has become quite the “domestic manager,” as she likes to say. After eating our fill, we headed to Arlington National Cemetery. Although this spot was not initially on my extensive to-do list, I’m so glad I went. It’s beautiful and filled with history.

We of course visited as many monuments as we could during our Washington D.C outings; the Washington, Lincoln, and Vietnam memorials were spectacular. Of course, I had to be a tourist and pretend to hold things up in photos.

I also took the obligatory picture outside of this clearly unimpressive place.

We also tooled around Georgetown a bit, which I did enjoy- it’s a lovely part of town. We even managed to pop in to Georgetown Cupcake (there was no line!) for a quick cupcake before

As Devyn clearly predicted, perhaps one of my most favorite places had to be Annapolis. I decided to shed my usual black/grey uniform and blend in with the locals in my Lilly Pulitzer. There’s nothing like dressing up in your friends colorful closet to make you feel like you’re really on vacation. I felt very festive.

The evening wouldn’t have been complete without dockside drinks at Pusser’s. Despite living walking distance from a bar that serves the original Painkiller cocktail, I decided to cross the country just to have another one. You know, for the sake of quality control.

Yes, they did taste the same on the east coast, although the view might have been slightly better.

Some people compare falling in love to that feeling of coming home after a long vacation. I hope this saying doesn’t ring true for everyone, because I’m almost always a little bit sad. Don’t get me wrong, I love my little apartment and its purple bathroom, but I almost always feel a little deflated when a fantastic vacation comes to an end. There’s a unique feel to the East Coast that we don’t have here in California. Everything here is quite shiny and new (and as of lately, very brown), where there’s a little bit of history around every corner in Washington. It was quite fun to be on a vacation where I learned so much. Devyn would frequently point out the many plaques on the side of the road that marked a historic something-or-other. There was even one outside of a sushi restaurant-apparently where John Wilkes Booth hid from authorities after assassinating Lincoln. Who knew? Above all, I came away with the strangely encouraging fact that there is still so much left to see.

EVA♥

The Consolation Prize

Posted on September 23, 2015 by 4evamaria

Hello all!

(Can you tell I’ve been really into gifs lately? Who doesn’t like GIFs? Yes, Eva, welcome to the 21st century…)

Today, I wanted to share with you about a little life phenomenon I’ve come to appreciate lately. I call it the “consolation prize.” Yes, it’s exactly like what it sounds like.

I came to appreciate the existence of the consolation prize years ago; I was out to sushi with a girlfriend of mine, and something specific on the menu caught my eye. I used to never order seaweed salad, well, just because I always thought pure seaweed was a surefire way to trigger my gag-reflex if I’ve ever heard of it. But, I had somehow come to really enjoy it. A man I had dated once had insisted on ordering it whenever we went out for Japanese food. I don’t think I would have ever tried it of my own volition had it not been for him. It’s delicious. That being said, I made the crack to my friend that if there was one positive thing that had come from my previous relationship it was my awareness of the existence of seaweed salad.

It’s sort of sad to say, but when we emerge from tough situations, whether it be a less-than ideal job or partner, sometimes all we can do is try to find a little bit of the silver lining. This might not happen overnight, hell, when I left my first “real” desk job, I had a difficult time finding the prize. I felt a little bit like I had given up, that I had flunked out of adult-land, knowing that a rigorous desk job in a corporate setting wasn’t really for me. Oddly enough, I came away from that job with better relationship with my father. Being at the same company, in vastly different departments, he would walk by my desk, find me buried in paperwork, and insist on taking me to lunch. We weren’t speaking very much at the time, and rarely saw each other outside of work, but, after a year, our conversation became a lot more than just about the weather. In a strange way, we bonded over work. The same thing goes with most relationships that don’t work out the way you hope they will. Some of the best things that have come out of some of my dating mishaps were wonderful restaurants, the discovery of new neighborhoods, or a really great pair of shoes. I try not to let how I’ve come about these things color my opinion of them.

The boss lady always tells me that much of your quality of life, of who you are as a person, has to do with how you deal with disappointment. Sure, I’m not going to tell you that I’ve never locked myself inside, drank a ton of champagne, and spent some time lying face down on the floor. A lot of things in life straight up suck. They suck, and there’s not very much you can do about it. I think people don’t tell you this often, but sometimes it’s true. However, you can pick yourself up, and find yourself with that consolation prize. You can change your bad experience into a decent, maybe even good one.

You can do it!

EVA♥

#Missadventure: A Love Story

Posted on September 21, 2015 by 4evamaria

Hello all!

I’m going to have a Cathy-comic moment and say “Ack!” It’s been altogether too long since I’ve posted on Watch Me Juggle. You see, I mentally blog everyday, it’s just the booting up the ancient laptop part that seems to scare me. Since I spend so much time in front of a computer at work, I’ve somehow developed some sort of odd fear that my work will jump out at me the minute I open up my computer at home. Completely irrational, I know, this isn’t Poltergeist. That’s just my not-really-an-excuse excuse.

Despite my recent aversion to the computer, I seem to have developed the pesky habit of staring at my phone into the wee hours of the morning, when I’m supposed to be sleeping. I usually regret this, but, just the other day, I discovered something amazing. Kate Spade, in a stroke of marketing genius, has released a series of short films featuring Anna Kendrick, all with the hashtag “Missadventure.” I’ve fully fallen in love with these spots, and have maybe watched them each four or five times at least. Adventure #1 features Kendrick, toting a mini Christmas tree and scores of shopping bags, locked out of her New York brownstone. She ends up taking selfies, drinking champagne on her stoop, and being generally embarrassing until inevitably rescuing herself.

Adventure #2 depicts an LA getaway, where she is mistaken for a meditation guru to the starts. Hilarity ensues. Best guided mediation I’ve heard in a long time: “We are among the clouds, and we look down and we see our feet….and our super cute shoes.”

The latest, Adventure #3, a decked-out Kendrick (complete with purse dog, Milos) is stood up for a date at the Russian Tea room. Again, while only minimally embarrassing herself, she manages to find even better company- not just in her fabulous, glittery gnome shaped purse. “#DatingMyPurse…is that funny? Or just worrying?” You can even shop the looks seen in each film here.

I could go on and on about how much these little ads resonate with me. I’ve shared them with countless people. They’re hilarious, and altogether a little bit too true. (“He sent me a fish emoji..? Is that a metaphor for something?” ) There’s really just something lovable about #missadventure; we’ve tried in the past to categorize this trait as “adorkable,” but this is something a bit more. Anna Kendrick portrays the quintessential girl on the go, who might be a little quirky, but is also more than capable and unabashed at who she is. This pays off for her, and I’m sure legions of women, both young and old, can somehow relate to the way she navigates her life’s challenges. Sometimes, it feels right to do something as ridiculous as having a conversation with your purse and/or dog, ordering just dessert, or dressing up in all your new purchases all at once. It certainly helps that she looks fabulous doing it. Good job, Kate Spade, good job. Now…where can I buy that ridiculous gnome purse?

EVA♥

Why Saying ‘No’ Makes You A Better Person

Posted on September 10, 2015 by 4evamaria

Hello everyone!

I was stuck in the traffic that is my morning commute and found myself utterly bored. Because texting and driving is heavily frowned upon, I just let my mind wander. I’ve been thinking a lot of deep things about life lately:”What am I going to make for dinner?” “What if I could have gotten that cheaper on eBay?” You know, the usual. So, it surprised me that among the many deep things that I was pondering, I came across what feels like a gem. I like to joke about my lack of “adult” behavior here quite a bit, but I recently realized that there are some very adult things I do on a daily basis that I don’t give that much thought to anymore. One thing I’ve noticeably become more confident doing over the last few years is simply saying ‘No.’

Usually the word ‘no’ has some really strong connotations that come with it. If you say it too often you must be a negative, stubborn, selfish, uncaring, immature person, right? The awful adjectives could go on and on. We assign it to toddlers, young people with zero-self awareness prone to pitching fits. But, it’s taken me a while to realize that it can be a positive thing too. ‘No’ is appropriate for many occasions, not all of them bad. When it comes to making friends and building relationships I’ve learned to be a little more discerning. Sometimes it’s not the easiest thing to do, but if you have people in your life that you’re incompatible with, or who don’t add much of anything positive, you can say no to them. Be honest, be kind, but still, say no. It’s a much more mature way of going about things than picking fights or leaving them hanging.

You work life might similarly benefit from your new word. Be realistic, if you find yourself running into problems or limitations, you can say no, and maybe spur some change. It’s perhaps not the most optimistic way of thinking about things but, as someone who isn’t terribly opinionated or outspoken, saying no can empower you in certain situations. Of course, I’m not saying that simply saying no all the time is a realistic way of getting things done, or an effective way of getting out of doing things you don’t want to do. It is important, however, to use it as a tool when you feel yourself deviating from the path you want to go. I realize there’s quite a lot of irony to be found in my writing this, as I’m pretty sure I went on a tirade on Saying ‘Yes’ to things a mere few months ago. With gifs and all! They’re weirdly similar- just two sides of the same coin. The ultimate moral of the story is to take a stand for the things you can do, and want to do, and don’t be afraid! Saying no can be a means of sticking up for yourself, really. If you’re able to draw these lines for yourself, I suspect you might garner some respect from the people you would least expect it from. I hate to say it, but you might have a little more respect for yourself, too.

That’s all for now! I’ll be back soon with more incredibly deep things.

EVA ♥

300 Reasons Why Vegas is The Best

Posted on September 8, 2015 by 4evamaria

Hello all!

Here’s my promised, requisite post all about Las Vegas!

I am still alive, and yes, the 300 reasons title is total click-bait. It’s more like seven reasons, to be more realistic. Don’t doubt that I couldn’t give you a really long list of reasons why I love Vegas, but I have a feeling on one would want to read through that! As I’ve said before, the “what happens in Vegas” rules do not apply to me, as I obviously can’t stop talking my friends’ ears off about the many adventures I’ve had there. Quite honestly, I can’t say enough good things about Vegas. Sure, it’s gone down in the history books as “Sin City,” which makes it sound like absolutely no good can come of time spent there. But that’s where popular belief is wrong. Today, I wanted to sit down and share with you some of the reasons why I love Las Vegas so much. It really is the adult Disneyland.

1. You can Choose Your Own Adventure

To give the above photo a little context, my friend Kelsey and her girlfriends ended up getting upgraded to the most beautiful suite I’ve ever seen at the Bellagio. That’s the beauty of Vegas: it’s an adventure. If you feel like staying in a seedy hotel and play poker with a yard size margarita strapped to your neck, you certainly can. Or you can turn your whole life into a party- Vegas is home of the exclusive dayclub/nightclub extravaganza. You can jump up and down while famous djs spin and get showered in champagne/confetti until you’re blue in the face. Not into the nightlife? You can have a ridiculously elegant meal at a Michelin-rated restaurant and shop at the finest stores. Have kids? Believe it or not, all those Vegas lights and water slides can be awfully fun for the kiddos. I speak from experience!

2. Little to no room for judgement

Hey, if anyone in Vegas decides to give you stink-eye (Yes, grandma, over there. I know you think my skirt is too short), just remind them, and maybe yourself, that you are in fact in Las Vegas. Most likely you’re in a casino. They can get off of their high horse and come join the rest of the people gathered around the same craps table they are.

Oh hey! It’s Afrojack everybody!

3. “Because we can!”

This is, in my humble opinion, the Vegas slogan. It’s the only way one could justify the recreation of the canals in Venice, a functioning volcano, dancing waters, and an indoor, life-size waterfall. Who thought this was a good or even remotely rational idea?! You know what else Vegas has, just because it can? Parades. Order a bottle at a 500% markup? You get a whole drum-line coming to your table to deliver it! Alternately, it might be a group of girls in grass skirts, on the shoulders of bouncers, blowing-whistles. Why? Because we can. It completely defies all logic. Oh, look! Money is literally raining from the ceiling! You can’t make this stuff up.

4. All the freebies

Vegas is the one place where women can take advantage of the system. Sure, we may still make 75 cents to an hour for the exact same job as a man, but we can go anywhere and just about do anything for zero dollars and zero cents in Vegas. And we can get there faster. I’m very much a feminist, but I also have no qualms about taking advantage in Vegas. Which brings me to my next point…

5. Vegas can make you feel fabulous

I made myself at home with my $14 cocktail inside of a human-size chandelier/bar. In Vegas, you can get dressed up, skip the lines, be served frozen grapes poolside, and have your picture taken. Be sure to wear your boldest/sparkliest attire.

6. Nothing is too absurd

Oh look! Somehow there are 15 Australians in our hotel suite!

This very much falls under the “Because we can!” reasoning. You can do just about anything you feel like in Vegas! Feel like sleeping all day, staying up all night? Okay! Feel like holing up in your hotel room and ordering room service? Why not? Want to spend your paycheck on ridiculous things, like a daybed at a pool party…uh, okay! Of course, I’m not saying that all of these things are necessarily a good idea, but you have your regular life to make mature choices. Heck, make up an alias for yourself, if you want! My friend Courtney spent her time in Vegas as Morgan. Whatever floats your boat! Have fun.

FullSizeRender (3)

7. Singles, singles, and more singles

Single? Never fear, Vegas is the one place in life where you win! Sure, you might not get that nifty tax break, but going bananas in Vegas is one of the top perks of being unattached, in my humble opinion. You’ll still get accosted by your great aunt repeatedly asking why you’re all alone at your cousin’s wedding, but you just had a freaking amazing vacation.

EVA ♥

Five Things

Posted on August 26, 2015 by 4evamaria

Hello everyone,

It’s that time again! No, it’s not just any ordinary Wednesday, but it’s #NationalDogDay!

Is it just me, or is just about every-other-day some sort of hashtag something-or-other? #NationalDanceDay, #NationalDoughnutDay, #NationalWatermelonDay- exactly who is in charge of making up these supposed “national” holidays? Well-played Instagram, you’re giving us more and more excuses to post unnecessary photos of food on a daily basis. And who doesn’t love trending topics on social media? Don’t get me wrong, I plan to take full advantage of #NationalDogDay by kicking off this week’s Five Things with some pictures of adorable puppies, courtesy of Buzzfeed, of course!

Let’s begin with Looking at These Awesome Dogs, and go from there…

jawssh.com

This was captioned: “Look at this dog, who’s not quite sure how he got there or how to get down, but he damn sure doesn’t want to admit it.” His guilty face and slight confusion says it all. Now you can say you’ve gotten your oversize puppy fix for the week!

Speaking of oversize puppies, I found this chubby cat looking rather regal enduring the hot weather we’ve been having lately. Or perhaps she was just staring at the birds outside? Either way, she’s quite the entertaining subject.

I’ve been spending a bit of time wandering about airports lately, and these fabulous Essie vending machines seem to have become somewhat of a fixture. Sure, why not give yourself a fun mani while waiting for your delayed flight? It seems like a great way to pass the time!

@Mallorylucille, designlovefest.com

My good friend Emily shared this beautiful design with me on my birthday. It’s from artist Mallory Lucille Rose, by way of DesignLoveFest. I think it would make a great wall print, don’t you?

If you read my previous post, you’ll recall that I went on some Las Vegas adventures quite recently. The photo above is from my friends’ Bellagio suite overlooking The Strip. Pictured is the “chandelier” that hung over their formal dining table. Not too shabby…

Until next time,

EVA♥

Don’t Sell Yourself Short

Posted on August 24, 2015 by 4evamaria

Hello dear readers!

Longtime no…write? As usual, I’ve been off on adventures, this time to the single’s motherland: Las Vegas. Don’t worry, the “what happens in Vegas” rules don’t apply in this case- stay tuned for all the reasons I enjoy visiting Sin City so much. And, in case you were wondering, Yes, it was really hot out there.

Today, I was inspired to write for a number of different reasons. When I get back from vacation, regardless of where I’m going, I tend to get a bit introspective about life, in general. Relaxing and thinking about the day’s interactions also helps pass up the otherwise tedious commute hours. But, what primarily got the wheels turning was a conversation I had with one of my girlfriends today. Now, I can only speak from experience, but there seems to be an epidemic of bright, talented young women out there who are self-deprecating to a fault. Disparaging might be a better word for it. I consider myself very lucky to have such wonderful friends, they’re all ladies that I admire, and they have qualities that I aspire to embody. It completely baffles me when they turn around and fixate on the few things they dislike about themselves, or compare themselves to other people. Of course, being on the outside, it’s easy for me to tell them that they’re absolutely crazy, that they have so much to be proud of and that the people in their lives think so highly of them. It’s interesting that our friends almost always, in so many words, think we’re selling ourselves short.

cheerup

I’m going to go ahead and throw this piece of advice out there:

Don’t sell yourself short. Period.

Surprise, surprise, like most pieces of “helpful” advice, this is easier said than done. Sometimes, you even need to stand up for yourself a little bit, like Karen Walker over here:

I had a little bump in the road a while back, and no one was more surprised than me when I, quite literally stood up for myself and announced: “Um, wait. I’m amazing!” As women, we’re told not to brag, not to tell people what to do, or how it is, but when did this manifest into sabotaging our own self-confidence? Just because a relationship or job isn’t the best for us, doesn’t mean that there’s something fundamentally wrong with us. It takes quite a bit of self-assessment to figure this out, and that certainly isn’t easy. It’s possible, though. Like I’ve said before, there will always be things in our lives that we will want to “upgrade,” or paths we occasionally wish we had taken. But, sometimes we need to stand up for ourselves, because no one else can really do it for us.

EVA♥