It's summer, and I'm back!

One day, I shall have this whole blog-on-a-normal-schedule thing down.
I just seem to have trouble figuring out to make it part of my daily routine right now.
I say the summer is the perfect time to practice.

I actually have a lot I want to blog about and get out there, but we'll just play a game of catch up for the time being.

If you had asked my just 2 weeks ago, I would have told you that this summer, I would be solely in Muncie. I was supposed to be design editor for our Ball State Daily News student-run newspaper (which I will often refer to as 'the DN'), continue my internship at The Star Press, Muncie's local paper, and take a few classes.

But one phone call shook up my plans.

Now, my time is going to be divided between Muncie and Indy. Half away, half at home.

The Indianapolis Star called me during finals week, asking me to step in to fill a Pulliam Fellowship position that somebody had dropped. The Pulliam Fellowship. Now that was something I couldn't turn down.

So while I had to back out of continuing at The Star Press, I am maintaining my position as design editor for the university paper. And while going back and forth each week will be a lot of gas — a lot of gas — I will be, let's just say, very well paid altogether.

For now, I am living just in Muncie working for the DN and The Star Press, until I start working in Indy in June.

So what can you expect me to share with the blogosphere this summer?

• Lessons I learn while getting my first taste of living on my own, outside of the dorms.
• New experiences of working in a real city and a bigger internship.
• Inspiration I find for design and DIY projects and cooking and...anything.
• My own DIY projects and planning as I prepare to move into an apartment this fall.
• Weekly themed posts floating out there from other lovely bloggers.
• Random tidbits of the rest of my life, from the music I'm listening to, new goals and dreams, or just my latest rants and raves.

So here's to being a better — and hopefully more interesting! — blogger :)

Let's talk tabs...

Sometimes, I just keep adding tabs to one of my Safari windows to things I want to go back to when I have the time, or in this case, things I wanted to share but just didn't have the time to blog at the time.

First off, I have up my blogger homepage, situated on my list of blogs I stalk follow. I seriously spent a big chunk of my Saturday afternoon sifting through all sorts of design blogs, from graphic to interior. And I was finding blog inspiration along the way, thus my second tab is an entry waiting to happen. My own rendition of "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly" from Aly at Analyze This will be coming soon.

I am also in love with the lovely blog titled D E S I G N L O V E F E S T, and the brains behind it is Bri Emery, who is phenomenal. I want to be this awesome as a graphic designer when I get older. And her work space is sweet as well. Check out her "office" (if you can call it that), inspiration, and whatnot in this interview from Design*Sponge, another new favorite site that is another open tab on my internet right now.

Moving along, as if I haven't gushed about enough design stuff already, this website called House Industries is full of cool, amazing fonts! The designer in me can't help but feel giddy.

As for the interior design geek in me, I bought the cutest wall decor at Target yesterday:

I got so excited when I saw it, and my roommate thought I was ridiculous. But, it is definitely going to serve as inspiration for my room decor in my apartment next year! Speaking of, my next tab is this cute fabric I found online at Joann's:

I plan on covering my little ottoman with it, or something similar.

[I'm also planning a trip to the flea market next weekend with a roommate and a friend. So excited!]

And my last tab up is from the Ball State academics page. I've decided to take on an entrepreneurship minor. (And I successfully spelled that on the first try!) Anyways, after some inspiration from reading about some awesome designers, I decided that freelance on the side of my future job would be amazing, but I want to be able to make the most of it. I figured this area of study would not only be a huge help, but extremely interesting as well!

So, here's to the small things making my days bright. I'm fighting the February blues the best way I know how! :)

Let the good times roll

So I've noticed that whenever I am at school, I always just have sporadic catch-up posts. I spend my free internet-roaming time reading other blogs instead of writing mine. And that time is extremely limited. So as for the last 2 1/2 weeks of my life — here goes.

Everything is going so well right now (for the most part) that I keep looking for the pothole that shake me up. [Metaphorically, that is. Well, I guess literally, too. My car is pretty fragile.] Anyways, while I still battle some procrastination, I am actually handling my work load better than I ever have before. I think that's why I always like to keep and extremely full schedule; when there's less time to get stuff done, I'm better at making time for it. While 18 hours of school seemed like a lot last semester, this time I'm in 19 hours, plus 20 hours of my internship each week. But I'm faring well with it all and still upholding my 2 nights a week and the university paper. I'm only lacking in my AAF attendance, but I'm working on it.

Speaking of my internship, I just finished my second week and I'm feeling really good about it. I'm catching on fast and am hoping to pick up speed so I can give my full design potential. I'm working on getting comfortable and meeting everyone. Still, it never fails to amuse me that when I step on the elevator with Star Press employees that haven't met me, and they automatically hit the 3rd floor button thinking I'm an Ivy Tech student. Then after they ask, they are surprised, apologize, and introduce themselves. I guess it's a good way of meeting people. ;)

In other internship news, summer internships that is, nothing is developing on the LV Sun front. But, I did just hear that I may or may not have a 50/50 shot at a design internship with the Louisville Courier-Journal! Nothing is definite and the circumstances are strange — some of our professors have been shuffling some interns around and think I'm a good fit for Louisville — but hopefully I will hear soon about what's happening. It's a great internship and I would be lucky to get it! In the mean time, I'm applying to the LA Times and Cape Cod Times, for back up.

Well I think I've about exhausted this post, but here's a few random things I'll leave you with:
— Emilee, Kelsey, and I finally have a fourth roommate for our apartment next fall! It's one of our current suitemates, Kristin. :)
— I got a new parking spot today that is closer to my dorm so getting to my car to go to work will be less of a hassle. Very exciting.
— Some of my family is coming up tomorrow to take me out to eat for my birthday, which is on Monday!
— I am hoping to finish a 21 by 21 post for my birthday that I started, oh, probably last summer. I just think it's appropriate for my 20th birthday. :)
— Some friends and I are planning a mission trip to an orphanage in a foreign country to embark on in a few years.

And lastly...on my honor I will try to be a better blogger.

Happy Syllabus Day(s)

First day of the new semester...

and I can't complain.

I think it's going to be a good 16 weeks.

As for the title of this post,

get up to date with your college slang.

The first days of class are always called

Syllabus Day,

because quite honestly,

all you do is go over the syllabus.

[And get out early!]

Coming up this week:

I start my internship tomorrow....

EEK!!!

I'm nervous and excited

all at the same time.

Then this weekend I'm heading home,

even though it's the first week back,

because my sister and nephew from

Vegas are flying in for a visit.

So, Pampered Chef Party

with my other sister,

some family bonding,

and celebrating December and January birthdays

on Sunday.

And then...

no classes on Monday!

[Happy Martin Luther King, Jr. Day]

I'll be sure to let you all know

how my first day at

The Star Press goes!

Whelmed

It's that time of year. The mid-semester madness is dying down and everything is moving at a steady pace. However, the Holidays are just around the corner.

First, I can't wait for Thanksgiving in Vegas.

Change of climate, change of scenery...

and I miss my long-lost sister and nephew so much!

And there's nothing like a homecooked meal? :)

I can't believe that it is almost December already.

I'm trying to crank out a Christmas list for the family.

I already know it will have lots of kitchen-oriented items on it since I'm living in an apartment next semester.

Other than that though, who knows.

Surprises are always good.

Jumping ahead to next semester...

I just can't wait, simple as that.

Besides my immersive project class with Circle of Blue,

I applied for a spring internship with the Muncie Star Press.

(I hope I get it!)

It's paid so it would be good weekly income for just a few days of work.

And I could knock out my internship credit and not worry about the paperwork with future internships.

Thanks to my sister's recent discovery of a cheaper travel alternative - Spirit Airlines - I'm starting to consider maybe spending my spring break in Vegas. It would be a nice weather change after an Indiana winter.

Lastly, I just found out about an AMAZING opportunity coming my way in Summer 2012.

One of the graphics professors is going to be in charge of a summer program in London...

during the 2012 Summer Olympics!

And he is going to be looking for some of the best students to go!

So I will definitely be working my butt off this next year and half to secure a spot.

The best part -

(which isn't set in stone yet) -

is that he is hoping to partner with a news organization in London to let us make interactive graphics for them during the games!

[insert about a gazillion exclamation points here]

I am beyond excited for the next couple years :D

Goodbye, October - Hello, November!

Ok, so maybe I'm a few days late, but October overflowed into my November just a little bit. 

But now it's done.

Gone.

GOOD RIDDANCE.

So November...

I have officially started getting stuff together for internship applications.

Current prospects:

The Las Vegas Sun

The Seattle Times

The Louisville Courier-Journal

Time, Inc.

(more to come!)

And in just a few weeks I will be heading to Vegas for Thanksgiving with the Gwynns :)

I'm just ready for a BREAK!

2 more days...

until I get out of this place for a little while.

Goodbye cornfields...

...hello, Rocky Mountains!

I am heading out to Denver on Wednesday

for a Society for News Design conference.

$395 for registration alone.

Luckily, thanks to some crappy flight service from Frontier back in June,

I had a flight voucher and ended up only paying

$1.46 for the rest of my flight.

(And no, that is not a typo.)

Anyways, it should be a good time.

Lots of workshops and chances for networking.

I'll be sure to have some pictures when I get back :)

Under construction...again

So I have this thing with change. I'm a restless person in general, so when i comes to certain aspects of life I need a change every so often, of scenery, of atmosphere, whatever.

That said, my page will probably be undergoing waves of change over the next couple weeks until I'm happy with it again.

my dream dorm

So during my lazy day off, I came across a Bed, Bath, and Beyond catalog.

NOT GOOD.

I have this little obsession with interior design and remodeling.

Seriously, I used to rearrange my room at least once a month when I was younger.

So of course this catalog is featuring all sorts of dorm decor since we all go back next month.

Needless to say, my creative juices started flowing and I started to envision my dream dorm room.

Here are some pieces that would be my inspiration:

I've been really into gray lately,

and I think this would really offset the other bright pieces I already have

to provide a good balance of color in the room.

I had a friend that had some of these in her dorm last year,

and I just thought they were great.

From reminders to roommate notes,

I could find a million uses for these!

And they come in cute colors :)

I'm always needing more storage,

but brown boxes are so boring.

I could throw just about anything in these cute storage bins

and not be worried about looking too cluttered.

(or about forgetting what I was putting away in the first place!)

I cannot stand plain white walls.

I love to hang up pictures that remind me that

there is something more out there.

While I could plan out my dream room forever, I just don't have that much time.

What would your dream room look like?

I'm alive, I promise

I'm just in way over my head right now...

With a to-do list a mile long.

Lots of homework to do, cleaning to do, and benefit planning to do.

And church softball starts on Monday.

So basically I won't get to breathe again until...

August.

Funny, I thought summer was supposed to be less stressful.

Anyways, I am back from vacation,

(which I will post about next with pictures!)

and back to work.

On the happier side of my life...

I designed my FIRST front page last night!

I still have a long way to go,

but this was my first shot at it,

and my editors agree that it was a dang good one :)

Also, while life may be hectic,

good times are ahead.

Saturday

I am heading to Cincinnati with a couple friends

to attend the Bamboozle Roadshow.

15-some bands for about $20,

yes please :)

Sunday

my dad's family is coming over for Father's Day,

which will be nice since we only see them a few times a year.

Tuesday

my family is heading down to Santa Claus, IN

for some Holiday World fun.

It is also my nephew's 6th birthday!

Wednesday

I'm heading back to Muncie to do some page design,

then driving to my grandma's because...

Thursday

my grandma, mom, sister, nephew, and myself

are driving to Chicago

to go to

LEGOLAND DISCOVERY CENTER.

And yes, I am 19 years old,

and wayyy excited for this!

Should be a good week :)