Why I've Been MIA

Okay, I am officially a bad blogger.  After the whole Anthro ordeal I sort of stopped checking out a lot of blogs for a few weeks.  I unfortunately didn't post anything new on my end either.  I really want to elaborate on a lot of these topics, but here's a quick update on what's been happening with me.

First off, I got engaged!!! My wonderful boyfriend now fiance proposed last Monday at the Rose Gardens on campus.  I didn't expect it at all, and it honestly hasn't sunk in yet.  We're planning to have the wedding next year, but for now I'll post the one thing every girl probably wants to see, which is the ring!

It's absolutely stunning in person.

He also bought me the most gorgeous pink roses.  They lasted so long! 

If you follow me on Yelp at all, you'll notice that I finally got my shiny Elite '11 badge!  This just goes to show that if you put the effort in, write quality reviews, and interact with other yelper's you can become Elite too!  I went to my first event last night with my fiance, and it was really fun!  We met lots of great people, and I hope I can attend another Elite event soon :)

I've been super busy with graduate school.  Between being a TA, my involvement in two committee's, and my courses, I've been jam packed busy.  I didn't realize how much work being the secretary of the chemistry graduate student society was, and I can definitely handle it, but it was a bit of a wake-up call.  I have to give a presentation on a research article in one of my classes next week, which is a bit scary, but I'm sure it will go fine.

So yeah, I feel really bad that I'm not blogging more.  I do have lots to write about, I just haven't had time to write it all out.  Please bear with me followers!  I promise I'll write more posts!

My Thoughts on the Anthro Ordeal

I'm sure most fashion bloggers have heard about the controversy that's unfolded in the past few days.  I don't really feel the need to re-explain the whole situation since it's plastered on blogs and forums.  If you're interested, here are a few links:

GOMI Discussion
The Pursuit of Hippyness: Her Personal Experience
Anthroholic's True Colors
Effortless Anthropologie's Post (read the comments)

I'm really new to the fashion blogger world.  I only started reading the majority of these blogs a few months ago before I started my own blog.  I unfortunately don't blog often, but I do read posts every day on my breaks.  I have been a fan of Anthroholic's blog for months, and even posted at the end of August that I was featured in one of her Reader Outfits posts.  I wasn't even aware that she offered a personal shopping service.  I only knew about recent contests on her blog because I entered a few.

I have a lot of sympathy for the countless victims of this deception.  There is no good reason that this should have happened, and I really hope that everyone receives the refunds they are entitled to.  The manipulation and quite frankly abuse of those affected is wrong on every count.  I fully understand why the victims kept believing the lies and deceitful messages they received, because the impression Kim gives on her blog is one of a sweet girl who's unequivocally in love with fashion and Anthropologie.  When you read someone's blog and exchange messages for a long enough time, you start feeling like they're a friend, and therefore someone that can be trusted.  Unfortunately, this situation has rocked a lot of people's confidence and trust in the fashion blogger world.

In all honesty, I'm just surprised it took so long for all of this to come to light.  If a seller was doing this on any of the clothing exchange sites (Lululemon Exchange or Ebay for example), they would have been banned a long time ago.  I'm just glad this got exposed before even more people got affected.  Whatever the true reason is for why this happened (debt, personal problems, mental issues), the fact of the matter is that it is inexcusable.  The victims deserve more than the apology given on Kim's blog (which isn't even up right now).  I just hope that she can find the help she needs.

I'll close with some links helpful posts from Effortless Anthropologie and J. Crew Aficionada detailing how to avoid getting scammed online.

Alert! Protecting Yourself From Online Transaction Scams - Effortless Anthropologie
Make Sure You Are Protected With Online Transactions - J. Crew Aficionada

Mini Happiness Project - Reflection

I will shamefully admit that I did not succeed nearly as well as I wanted to on my mini happiness project.  Let's break it down:

1. Write A Yelp Review Every Day

This actually didn't turn out too bad.  I ended up writing 23 reviews for the month of August, which is 8 away from my goal of 31 reviews.  I can't really beat myself up for that one.  I wrote a few multiples in a day, but the point of the matter is that I worked towards my goal of being Yelp Elite.  I'm not Elite yet, but I'll keep working at it until I get that shiny badge on my profile.

2. Contact A Different Person From My Past Every Day

Fail!  I wrote maybe 2 lengthy facebook messages.  I wrote an email to a girl I've semi kept in contact with since I moved from California.  I wrote a quick message on a few facebook walls.  Not even close to my goal.  I want to work towards fixing old friendships, but I feel like graduate school is the start of a brand new chapter in my life, and that some of my old friendships weren't exactly healthy for me.  I think I can forge many new friendships while maintaining some of my older ones I cherish.  I think I'll still reconnect with older friends, but I don't know if I necessarily have to write a facebook message to everyone.  Besides, a lot of them haven't tried to contact me at all!

3.  Write A Blog Post Every Second Day

Well I was smart on this one knowing that I wouldn't write a post every day.  According to Blogger, I wrote 8 posts in August, which is halfway to my goal.  August was just such a mess of plans and getting orientated in the lab.  I'm not saying it is going to be easier to write more often in September (I mean, it took 6 days to write this post), but I do enjoy updating my blog and I'm really excited I have some followers!  I'll keep working at it readers.  Don't give up on me yet!

4.  Spend Less Than 30 Minutes Wasting Time On The Internet In The Morning

Bingo! I rocked this one.  So many wasted hours were being spent on the internet in the morning, which made me late for everything in the past.  Now that I'm back to set schedules (and 9am classes!), I simply can't be late.  I'm getting better at checking my internet and facebook on my phone in the morning, and then just letting it go and getting ready.  I have unfortunately noticed that I'm on the internet a bit more in the evening, but old habits die hard.  At least I can make it to school early now!

5.  Accomplish One Thing On My To-Do List Every Day

This has mostly involved household chores, so it hasn't been that successful.  At all.  I mean, stuff is getting done at home.  Things are being dealt with, I'm caught up on all of my forms and duties that way, but there's a pile of laundry sitting in the bedroom that hasn't been sorted since Thursday.  That's 4 days of laziness!  I mean, I've had other things to do, but that 10 minutes I need to accomplish that has definitely been there.

So, what have I learned?  Well, one thing I learned is that I lost interest in keeping track of this on Excel really quickly (like August 6th quickly).  I should really write things down in a book, not on the computer.  I have an agenda for such purposes now.  I learned that I really need to work at things, because I get in crappy habits and I don't change them unless they are brought to my attention again, and again, and again.  I also learned that I don't really need to sit on the internet checking websites constantly. 

So, what's next?  Well, for starters, I need to start setting long term goals that are more meaningful.  I really want to be a better, more rounded person, but I have to work at it.  I think the next step is to try to figure out what I want to accomplish by the time I finish my Masters.  I am going to over-haul my Day Zero List completely, and then write it out and keep it where I can see it.  I will blog about that once that happens (which may take over a week!).

I have so many fashion posts in my head, I just need to take pictures and write out posts.  Look forward to more posts soon!