The Side Effects of Retail

This is what happens when I work a billion crazy hours and have a social life...

Job Love

You know you love your job when the retail bruises you accumulate are shaped like hearts...

But, how can you not love it when you get to drive in on Lake Shore Drive and see sights like this...

And this...

And this... 

My friends: Find a job you love in a city you love just as much... I'm such a better person for it :)

All My Ex's Live In Texas

Ok, 0 of my ex's live in Texas... But how fun is that commercial and song? I think I need to download the whole song so I can sing more than that one line! 

Back to the title though. I was in Texas last week! I spent the first few days in Dallas for work and then hopped over to Austin for the rest of the week to see a great friend of mine, her husband, and her dogs! Here are a few Instagram shots for your viewing pleasure! 

 My friend is building a house. Walking through the pretty new model inspired my stop procrastinating and finally get the nerve to paint my kitchen cabinets! That's on the agenda this week. Stay tuned. Till then sing with me: "Alllll my ex's live in Texas!" 

Pinterest, Friends, Sleep, Work, Repeat...

Until I have 30 seconds to myself to write a proper post, I leave you with these wise words from my friend Pinterest that perfectly express my passion for the job that's taking up almost alllllll of my time these days...

And, as always... Thank you for being here! Every day I think I'm seeing things when I check in and see how many people are here reading junk I wrote! I appreciate that you're here and that you keep coming back, and apparently telling your friends :) 

-EJ

Can I Do This?!

On my goodness it's been a long couple of weeks! I'm sure you figured this out because I haven't posted anything! I've been working ridiculous hours at the new top secret retailer while I wrap up my training. I knew this would happen. But still, the lack of sleep and the sheer energy it requires to run, walk, climb ladders, and lift heavy boxes (all while using your brain) is a lot! Every day that I've woken up before 4 am I tell myself "you want to have babies. Babies wake up so many times during the night. This is good practice. Moms everywhere are awake right now." 

That pep talk sucks. a) What if I don't have babies? b) Anything before sunrise is early c) If I'm this big of a baby now, how will I been when I'm not the baby and I have one?!

This is where you can find me most nights. Near sleeping, checking emails, and resting my feet.  

My body is readjusting to retail in more ways than sleep deprivation. I forgot what it was like to get cut up, bruised, and break nails constantly. Now I remember and keep finding wounds in crazy places!

But seriously... I could do anything with sleep. I can do nothing without it (also, sleep cycle and smart alarm are super cool apps)!

We all have a very hard time trying to stay awake while getting ready in the morning!

This is usually my view as I throw on makeup and try to remember what day of the week it is

This is the view as I hop on the road to leave work. 

How. Perfect. Sigh... I've always been near the city and driven in to eat and do things but I've never been immersed in it. I've never left my car in the parking lot at work early in the morning and walked for coffee, walked back to work, walked to lunch and to shop, had someone show up on foot to pick me up to hang out after, walked to dinner and eaten outside, and walked back. Walk walk walk. I love it! 

Even at 4 am it's gorgeous. If you've ever flown into Chicago at night you know. At 4:00 the roads are pretty much your own and you can cruise by and be in love with the city and its lights...

 I have so much more than that to be grateful for too. I looked down at Starbucks the other morning and realized I was wearing Tom's ballet flats, jeans, and a cool sweatshirt with thumb holes. At work. In the city. I have a job. I make enough money for a house. And a car. And to feed me. And my dog. And my cat. And buy cool ceiling fixtures and gifts for people I love and coffee at Starbucks. I was texting my amazing friends and family who I love and love me. I am so very blessed. Bruised and sleep deprived but me and my thumb hole sweatshirt are soooo blessed. And, I really admire moms. Moms of all ages, but especially the ones with the tiny little babies that hate sleep as much as I love it! That's my sleep deprived ramble. I have to literally run this weekend in a 5k. Once that's all wrapped up I promise design work examples are headed your way!

You and I Have Come a Long Long Way!

The you and I are of course my living room and me! After getting a nice raise with my new job I decided to reward myself with something I'd been lusting after for over a year... A new light fixture (which was a sickening $300 after shipping)! I'd tried looking for something cheaper in an ugly shiny gold or something that I could spray paint, I'd looked at thrift stores only to be rewarded with the smell of burning hair, I'd looked everywhere. It was time to cough up the money. 

This was the day I met my living room:

And while messy, here it is today!

I think it complements my dining room fixture nicely and ties in the black I have all over the place:

After buying a black friday TV, Ikea coffee table and entertainment unit, painting my own rug and stairs, cutting up table cloths to make my drapes, and covering the same pillows I've had for years I have to say that it was worth every penny to splurge on something I love! 

Next on the agenda is buying my sectional I've been admiring for 2 years now and an accent chair. Then the end table, lamp, and leather chair will will move to the basement. Here's to hoping for lots of bonus's at the new top secret retailer! 

A Peek Inside My Drawers

Remember when I told you about cleaning out my closet and finding my Africa letters? Since starting my new job, home organization has been on my mind a lot. I think most people that know me would say I'm incredibly organized. I love planning and organizing every aspect of my life! I need to simmer down actually. So imagine my surprise when I realized that I'd gotten comfortable. I'd moved in to my house, stuck stuff in places, and never addressed it again. I started opening some drawers and getting a little uncomfortable. 

These two drawers have no official purpose in my kitchen. One is my coupon drawer. The problem with a drawer is that stuff expires and stays here forever. The other is my coffee filter, lunch bag, plastic silver wear, ant trap drawer. I have no idea how this even came to be. I just know it needs to change!

  This is my tool drawer. It also is my "I don't know where this should live" drawer. As a result I have tanning goggles (I haven't gone tanning in like 7 years), air freshener, thread, and pens living in here with my crowbar and hammer. 

 This is my long silver wear drawer. And my lids for cups. Rolling pin. Chopsticks. Chip clips. Measuring cups. It needs addressed!

This was my shining star of organization (and proof I go through a lot of forks since there aren't any!)

 But every time I shut the drawer this happens. Talk about wasted space. 

This is my baking and spice drawer. There's always a near collapse of spices whenever I get one out.   

   This is my baking stuff. Mixing bowls, beaters, etc. And my cooler. Why?! I don't even remember the last time I used a cooler. 

 This is my breakfast and on the go shelf of my pantry. Also proof that I really like Cheerios, almonds, and oat meal. The whole pile on the back of the shelf is a big mess. 

This is my recycling cabinet. I get too lazy to walk it outside and just pile around the can. You can see I've enjoyed some takeout, a new pair of Tom's, and more Cheerios. 

  I just had to show a "good" cabinet to try and redeem myself a little!

This is my solution in the bathroom to no medicine cabinet. Pretty organized. 

But before I get too cocky, this is my "random stuff" bathroom drawer. 

I was just sad looking at the mess I had. I needed some storage bins, organizers, etc before this would get better. But, I needed to feel instant gratification. So, I tackled my closet and my guest room closet. 

My life has changed a lot in the last year. I had a job that required me to wear all black business suits for 7 years. I had a lot of black suits! Then I went to a job where I had to wear dress clothes for year. So I have lots of different colors of dress pants, sweaters, and dresses. Now I wear jeans and tee shirts to work (so strange and awesome!). My closet full of suits and dresses wasn't working anymore! 

This was the left side/the main side I use. It was pretty dark:

 This was the right side. This is most of the random or casual stuff I never touch:

 This is my guest room closet. The box on the top shelf was where the Africa letters were. I have a bridesmaid dress, some sweaters that I have no idea why I kept (but had the presence of mind to not unpack them into my closet):

I also had a vacuum (this is the only carpeted room in the whole house), a Christmas pillow, the clothes I wore when I painted the room 2 years ago, an emergency bag that goes in my trunk during the winter (with boots, gloves, extra food, etc), a painting I inherited from my great grandma, some shelves, and a painting I bought in Africa. Basically nothing logical. 

 Oh and a light that had never worked. When the house was shown it was out. I've been that lazy that I've never changed the bulb. I'm so ashamed! 

 I use the drawers in this room for hats and scarves, bathing suits, and extra sheets. 

 Somehow extra picture frames, candles, and scrapbook paper found their way into them though? It's like the house is haunted. I started out by moving that all to the proper place. Then the spare sheets in the closet went into the dresser. 

 Then I went through my clothes. I had done my dresser not too long ago and ended up with this to donate:

After I did the left side of my closet I had this:

 And all of the junk on my right side was just that... Junk. 

 I wasn't ready to part with my black suits yet. I moved them all to my guest room with my very formal dress clothes that I probably wouldn't need more than once a year. Then I used all of my freed up hangers to hang clothes from my dresser that I frequently wear:

 The right side of my closet is again my less exciting side. This is where all of my dresses, dress clothes, and very wintery stuff went to live:

Here is the mafia widow closet. All black! The vacuum lives in the basement now and everything else has been given a home:

I forgot all about the painting I'd bought in Africa. The last time it hung was in Springfield. It works really well with the black and whites in the living room, but doesn't have any shadows. It looks great in the hallway:

  

 I was able to pull 2 trash bags of just closet clothes together to donate. 

So, I was able to make a dent in my closets! Last month I also did my office and attics. Stay tuned for bathroom and kitchen drawers, another closet, and the pantry!