What a compliment!

Today I was leaving my professor's office when a woman approached me in the hallway.

"Excuse me, but are you a grad student or instructor?" she asked.

"I'm sorry, no," I replied.

"Oh, it's just that I was driving today and saw you walking across the street. I thought, that girl walks with such confidence! Such...swagger even! And then I thought, she has to be a grad student or instructor...or else she is one extraordinary undergrad!"

Best. Compliment. Ever.

I'm wearing my hair up and glasses more often!

Monday again?

It is 1:07AM this Monday morning, and I'm up to my ears (okay, I think I am actually past my ears) in schoolwork.

Why do the weekends go by so quickly?

And why do I perpetually put off my homework until the last minute?

Here's hoping for a nice week!

Oh, and that I get to bed before 4AM. That would be lovely.

This picture makes me so happy.

Spin me away.

On Saturday, my two roommates and I eagerly went off to a spinning class at our campus rec.

Spinning pro!

My one roommate was a spinning vet and told us, "Oh, it's so much fun! It doesn't even feel like you're working out."

That sounded divine!

After many adjustments were made so that our spinning bikes were in the proper positions, the instructor turned on some fun music, and we began!

It became very clear that this class was not going to live up to the bold "It doesn't even feel like you're working out" statement.

Phrases such as "mental fortitude" and "soldier on" were frequently used as we pedaled and pedaled.

I had never sweat so much during a workout before! And my butt had never felt so uncomfortable. 

Right around the time I was contemplating hopping off that sadistic bike, my instructor shouted out, "There are NO quitters in this class!"

Oh, snap. I was stuck.

I spent the remainder of the 45 minute class praying to God for a nosebleed. I figured the instructor would have to let me leave if that happened.

The nosebleed never came, but I did manage to finish the class.

I ended up coming home and sleeping the afternoon away. 

I don't think I'll be spinning again anytime soon.

I bought BB cream!

A few days ago, I was flipping through this month's Vogue when I came across an article about BB creams.

BB creams, also known as beauty balm or blemish balm, have been quite the phenomenon across Asia. BB creams contain SPF and antioxidants for your skin. They also have a slight tint to them and consequently provide you with a bit of coverage for blemishes or uneven skin tone. BB creams even act as the perfect primer for your makeup!

Essentially, this cream is amazing.

And it's now in America!

After doing careful research, I decided on the Clinique Age Defense BB Cream (SPF 30) so this afternoon, I excitedly headed to my local Sephora.

via

As the Sephora worker scanned my miracle cream through, I told her, "I'm so excited to use BB cream. Vogue told me I had to have it. So. Here I am."

She looked at me and said, "Oh. Cool."

"Do you use BB cream?" I asked her eagerly.

"No."

"Oh, okay. Cool. I'm excited to use mine. It's supposed to transform my skin."

"Okay. Have a nice day." She handed me my little bag, completely unaware of this thrilling purchase.

Oh, well.

I can't wait to report back with news of my perfect skin! :)

Loud Mouth Chewing: Tortuous and Unnecessary

This morning, I was sitting in class when one of my biggest pet peeves began a few seats behind me.

I'm talking about loud mouth chewing, people.

Yep! Even you, adorable giraffe.

Once I hear a classmate enjoying a crunchy apple or smack-smacking a piece of gum, it becomes all I can concentrate on. My focus is completely diverted from the professor, and the only thing I can hear are those awful, terrible, obnoxious sounds. 

I understand that people get hungry during class. Especially a three and a half hour one like the class I had this morning. 

Oh, but why can't people simply chew quietly?

I just hope I can keep my severe annoyance in my head. It can be safely assumed that I may freak the whole class out if I randomly exclaimed, "STOP CHEWING SOOOOO LOUD!!!!!!!"

That might be a bit alarming.

"We only have two minutes left!"

Last night, my roommates and I went hard for Fat Tuesday.

Cookies, buckeyes, ice cream, popcorn, and wine were all involved. 

At 11:58PM, I gasped, "We only have two minutes left! Hurry!"

We then proceeded to spend the next 120 seconds trying to fit in a few last cookies and numerous spoonfuls of ice cream.

Classy and ladylike.

My roommate texted me this morning, "I woke up feeling fat. Successful night."

Indeed!

I just arrived home from Ash Wednesday mass on campus, and I have to say- having ashes on my forehead makes me feel like I'm Harry Potter with a scar! I am dying to approach someone and say, "This is the soot left behind when the Dark Lord tried to kill me."

 = 

Is that sacrilegious?

Oh, well.

Oh so romantic!

I shall be brief this Tuesday morning as this is the day of the week that I spend entirely too much time in class.

We read John Donne's "The Sun Rising" about a month ago in my English literature class, and I've read it fairly regularly ever since. I've already decided that I'm going to have it framed by my bedside sometime soon.

So here is your bit of metaphysical poetry for the day! It is quite a passionate poem. And oh so romantic.

Enjoy!

(Or not. I understand if you wish to navigate away from my blog after the blatant mentioning of "metaphysical poetry.")

"The Sun Rising"

John Donne

BUSY old fool, unruly Sun, 

        Why dost thou thus,

Through windows, and through curtains, call on us ? 

Must to thy motions lovers' seasons run ? 

        Saucy pedantic wretch, go chide 

        Late school-boys and sour prentices, 

    Go tell court-huntsmen that the king will ride, 

    Call country ants to harvest offices ;

Love, all alike, no season knows nor clime, 

Nor hours, days, months, which are the rags of time. 

        Thy beams so reverend, and strong 

        Why shouldst thou think ? 

I could eclipse and cloud them with a wink, 

But that I would not lose her sight so long. 

        If her eyes have not blinded thine, 

        Look, and to-morrow late tell me, 

    Whether both th' Indias of spice and mine 

    Be where thou left'st them, or lie here with me. 

Ask for those kings whom thou saw'st yesterday, 

And thou shalt hear, "All here in one bed lay." 

        She's all states, and all princes I ;

        Nothing else is ; 

Princes do but play us ; compared to this, 

All honour's mimic, all wealth alchemy. 

        Thou, Sun, art half as happy as we, 

        In that the world's contracted thus ; 

    Thine age asks ease, and since thy duties be 

    To warm the world, that's done in warming us. 

Shine here to us, and thou art everywhere ; 

This bed thy center is, these walls thy sphere.

It was nice knowing you!

With the season of Lent quickly approaching, my roommate and I sat down to discuss what we would be giving up for those forty days and nights.

Actually, we were sitting at the dining room table Facebook creeping on people when the topic came up. But that's neither here nor there.

I am going to make an effort to attend mass every week despite being "too tired" or "too busy."

Often, I'm just too lazy.

Besides that though, I am attempting to give up something I consider one of my top three loves in life.

Sweets.

Here I am POSING with a pint of ice cream. Someone call Non-Celebrity Rehab ASAP.

And I mean all sweets. Chocolate, candy, cookies, cupcakes...the whole lot of them.

I recently read that the more sweets you eat, the more you crave them.

I find this completely true and applicable to my own life.

Obviously I will be spending these last few days consuming an unhealthy and gluttonous amount of sweets.

If you live in the Cincinnati area, do not be surprised to see me at your local bakery or in the candy aisle of Target.

If you see me in one of these places after Wednesday, tell me to drop the bag of Hershey hugs and go say a Hail Mary.

And a light shone down

Last night, I was perusing the perfume section of my my local TJMaxx.

Have you noticed that they've recently brought in some really nice perfumes? I've been seeing Marc Jacobs Lola there for months now!

Anyway.

I was innocently looking through the different perfumes when something caught my eye.

No! It couldn't bet...yet yes. It was!

KATE SPADE TWIRL PERFUME!!!!!!!!!!!

So aesthetically pleasing.

TJMaxx had a set of Kate Spade Twirl perfume and two lotions! For only $35! I felt like the heavens were opening up, and a light was shining down on me. Maybe the heavenly choir was also chiming in, but I was too busy being excited.

With the box in my hands, I began to approach the register when this stupid little thing called reason appeared on my shoulder, making me remember the five or six different perfumes I already own. And my currently weak checking account.

"You really don't need this, Jenna. Go put it back," I literally spoke out loud (!) to myself.

And then something miraculous happened.

I had the willpower to place it back on the shelf, showing that I can resist my inner Becky Bloomwood.

Miracles do happen, bloggers.

No key detected!

Every Sunday, my family meets to have lunch or dinner together.

This past weekend, we went to J. Alexander's. I had been craving red meat (Is that weird? Confession- I love red meat). My steak was divine.

Anyway.

After lunch, my mom and I wanted to stop by this nearby shop. My dad said he would drop us off and drive around for a bit until we were finished.

Lovely, lovely.

My mom and I were ruminating over the purchase of a beautiful scarf when my dad called her cell phone.

"You have the key with you! The car's acting up! It's going to stop moving soon."

AHHHH!!!!!

My mom has a car that has a push button start. You just drive with the key relatively nearby. You know, like in your pocket or in the center console. Not two miles away in a women's clothing and accessories shop.

We left the scarf behind and quickly made our way back out to the curb.

My dad pulled up a few minutes later, laughing.

Apparently the car had been saying, "No key detected! No key detected!"

Lesson of the day: You cannot drive a car without a key.

Or maybe you can. For at least seven minutes or so.

This picture always makes me laugh. It's from a time when my mom, little brother, and dad all had to squeeze into my dad's backseat. It's completely irrelevant to this post except for the fact that the setting is a car.

Please fix this.

A few weeks ago, I went to check my bank accounts online.

My Visa bill was much higher than anticipated, and my Mastercard actually had a debit to it.

Freaking out, I scanned through my history until I realized that the bank had misapplied my last credit card payments, applying my Mastercard payment to the Visa and vice-versa.

I went to the bank the next morning and notified them of the mistake.

They didn't even say, "We're sorry."

Rude.

But they did acknowledge the mistake, and the manager told me I would receive a call the following week once it had all been sorted out.

Almost ten days later, the manager called me to report that the matter had been taken care of. I quickly went online and brought up my accounts again.

"Um, actually. It looks like it's worse than before," I commented, seeing a HUGE Visa bill and an even bigger debit to my Mastercard.

"What? Let me bring it up here...oh. They did the same problem all over again. I'll call you back when it's fixed for real."

Yes, bloggers. My bank committed the SAME EXACT problem a second time around! And once again, I received NO apology.

Ugghhhhh.

Has anyone else ever had banking issues?

The love of my life.

I've been reading these wonderful love story posts on Blogger lately, and while I am single, I decided to write about the love of my own life. I have linked up with From Mrs. to Mama to share to my own tale featuring someone I couldn't live without.


Kate Spade.


1. How long have you and your significant other been together?
I met Kate the summer between eight and ninth grades. I was fourteen...so about eight years now!


2. How did you meet?
My grandma and I were in Washington, DC and shopping in Georgetown when we came across the quaint and charming Kate Spade shop. I fell in love with this black, nylon backpack. I was ecstatic when my grandma insisted on buying it for me! Oh, how fabulous I felt with my Kate Spade backpack! 

The actual nylon backpack, eight years later.

3. If married, how long have you been married? If not, is this the guy you hope to marry?
Unfortunately, it is illegal to marry a brand. Congress is not working on any bills to help our situation.

4. If you are married, where did you get married at? Big or small wedding?  If not, where would you like to get married? And will it be big or small?

Sadly, this question is not applicable. 

5. Do you have any nick-names that you call one another? Do share!

When I'm thinking of Kate Spade in relation to my checking account, I call her a money killer or ruiner of financial stability. Usually though, I just call her fabulous.

6. Name 3 things you love most about your honey.

a) Her items are timeless and classic.

b) She has frequent and generous sales.

c) Kate Spade is well-made and lasts forever!

7. Tell us how he proposed? Or your ideal proposal?

Sigh. If only.

8. Is he a flowers and teddy bear kind of guy for v-day, or strawberries, champagne, and rose petals?

Definitely strawberries, champagne, and rose petals.

9. Are you a sunset dinner on the beach kind of girl, or pop a movie in and relax on the couch?

Pop a movie in and relax on the couch. I like being cozy. I'd love to add some Häagen-Dazs to this dream scenario. Kate and I love our ice cream.

10. Tell us one thing you'd like to do with your significant one day. If you could do anything? Go anywhere?

I'd love to go to Nordstrom and have a shopping spree, buying whatever Kate Spade items I'm lusting after! Or have an online shopping spree. Either would be divine.

11. Tell us what you plan on doing on this Valentine's Day.

I will be in class from 8:30AM-9:00PM, but my Kate Spade planner will be keeping me company. We might stop by Starbuck's and get a hot drink in one of the Valentine's Day cups, though!

12. Are you asking for anything this Valentine's day?

I am hoping for a new spring bag for the upcoming warm months!

13. Give us one piece of advice of keeping a relationship strong and full of love.

Brand loyalty.

14.  Show us a picture of what love means to you.

Hope everyone has an incredible Valentine's Day! <3

What a productive day! Not.

Saturday morning, my roommates and I all slept in until about 11AM.

Then, we congregated in the kitchen to talk about the events of our Friday night. After about an hour of this, I went back to bed.

I woke up once again at 3PM.

Just lounging around.

I spent my afternoon surfing Pinterest and Facebook and eating a peculiar amount of Bertolli soup (one of those frozen ones from Target; it was delicious if you're interested in trying one).

In the evening, my two roommates and I played "MASH," a game reminiscent of fourth grade.

We all ended up having no children but marrying our dream men. No one had to drive a junker or have a a career as a janitor. These were sort of okay results.

Finally, finally I did a load of laundry and began some of my reading assignments. My roommate and I even raised the temperature on our water heater, and I took a shower.

I realize that my Saturday productivity is awing and inspiring.

Hope this post didn't make you feel too worthless or lazy.

"But he's not old enough for that!"

This morning, I was talking to my mom on the phone during her commute to work.

"The creepiest thing happened last night," she told me.

"Oooooh. What?" I asked, instantly intrigued.

"I went upstairs, and guess what Ben was doing?"

Ben is my younger brother. He could be doing a lot of strange things. The possibilities seemed endless.

"Oh my God. What was he doing?"

My mom stopped for an appropriate dramatic pause before saying, "He was talking to a girl. He's going on a date tonight."

My mom and I then exclaimed over how young he is, and how this is all so weird to us.

Did I mention the fact that Ben is sixteen-years-old and a junior in high school?

What is it about the youngest of the family always seeming so, well, young?

Busy, busy.

One of my biggest pet peeves is when people sigh and exclaim, "I mean, I am just sooooooo busy! Like, so busy."

Busy. Busy. Busy.

Isn't almost everyone in this world crazy busy most of the time? Going on and on about your busyness is both annoying and unremarkable.

Anyway.

Today, I am going to claim to be "sooooo busy" and consequently cannot write a proper blog post. Instead I will leave you with Miss Sophie Grace Brownlee.

Too cute for words. These two girls are amazing.

Sort of makes you want to put on a tutu and sing Nicki Minaj in a British accent, doesn't it?

Happy Thursday!

That did not go as planned.

On Monday night, the conniving temptress, most commonly known as the lovely Kate Spade, alerted me on Facebook that she was having one of her surprise sales.

Oh, Kate! Why do you do this to me? Why must you continuously seduce my checking account into total financial ruin?

I quickly navigated over to the website and found a handbag that I needed.

Isn't it beautiful?

Love.

Buying a $149 purse is not in my budget right now. I am a poor college student who can only splurge on Kate Spade a handful of times each year (Note: I probably should not buy Kate even then), and this was not one of those times.

Being cunning and resourceful, I sent out a sincere email to my parents.

Subject title: "Handbag. Please."

In this email, I proposed my mom and dad purchase the handbag for me and set up a payment plan.

Brilliant and mature idea. Totally.

On the phone with my mom this morning, she informed me, "We aren't buying you that handbag. You have too many as it is...but I found a great wallet! Thanks for sending the sale info along!"

Click went the phone. Sigh went I.

How come I don't look like that?

Whenever I am in yoga class, I picture myself looking all athletic and trim like Scarlett Johansson in the movie "He's Just Not That Into You."

You know, like this.

Yeah. Not me.

Then, I look in the mirror. It's quite a different image.

I am not wearing flattering Lululemon attire. No tank top showing off my toned (yet feminine) arms. Nor am I wearing a pair of slimming yoga pants.

Instead, I sport an oversized high school t-shirt paired with Target leggings. Not the same effect.

Besides the aesthetics though, I also cannot move and balance myself like Scar Jo. I often struggle to make my body move into certain poses, and I am often tipping/falling/collapsing over.

Oh, and whenever I do the "Warrior Two" pose? I swear I look forty pounds heavier in the mirror. It may just be THE most unflattering angle I've ever had to view myself in.

I don't think Bradley Cooper will be contemplating leaving his wife for me and my yoga moves anytime soon.

Do not be mistaken!

Did something called the "Super Bowl" just end?

Sorry. I was too busy not caring.

Kidding. That's a bit harsh. I did have fun at my friend's apartment consuming high-caloric foods and watching the Half Time Show.

Madonna's "Vogue" performance? Amazing. And also very considerate to the female audience.

Anyway.

In more exciting Super Bowl Sunday news, I bought this GORGEOUS trench coat from Francesca's Collections today.

Stunning.

It is currently on sale for $34.98 (down from $68.00- steal!) and comes in both blue and purple. The one I ordered in blue is quite similar to the shade of Kate Middleton's engagement ring/dress. 

I have decided to act surprised when passerby mistake me for Princess Kate.

"Oops! Sorry. I'm actually not the Duchess of Cambridge!" I shall reply.

Awkward.

I know I am a bad driver. Please don't honk at me.

I am a bad driver.

I acknowledge this.

I cannot pull into a parking spot with two cars on either side. I cannot parallel park in a space that is any smaller than twice the size of my Camry. I have no peripheral vision so I often cut people off. I drive too close to the curb and have blown two tires as a result of this curb-hugging habit.

As Miley Cyrus would say, "Nobody's perfect."

Because of my subpar (and potentially dangerous) driving skills, I have a "No Honking" policy that is enforced inside my car.

I never honk at others unless the probability of our vehicles colliding is an incredibly high one. Or there is a life in danger. You know, serious conditions.

via

Unfortunately, the other drivers I encounter on the roadways do not share this "No Honking" policy with me.

I generally receive at least two honks every twenty-four hour period.

Each time, I take the honk very personally. It is as if someone has shouted something angry at me. My feelings are subsequently hurt, and I sort of want to cry.

I know I make driving mistakes so I don't honk at others when they mess up. Even the best of drivers sometimes cut someone off or forget an essential turn signal!

While Mr. Lennon may have dreamed of a world of peace, I dream of one free of mean-spirited honks.

Be nice on the road!

And avoid a blonde in a champagne colored Camry.

I need a printer!

Tuesday night, I had a paper due in English Lit class.

I arrived to campus half an hour early so I could run down to the building's computer lab and print off my essay before the beginning of class. I leisurely set down my umbrella and Java Chip Frappuccino in my classroom and made my way down to the lab.

THE PRINTER WASN'T WORKING!!!!

This is where the horror begins.

Now time pressed, I thoughtlessly ran around the building looking for a printer.

"Thank God!" I wanted to exclaim when I spotted a graduate student printing off papers in a side office.

"Hi." I said awkwardly, gazing down at the beautiful, functioning printer. "Could you tell me where there is a working printer in the building? I have a paper due in twenty minutes, and the one in the lab is out of order."

The graduate student just stared at me before replying, "I guess you'll just have to go to the library."

Seriously????

STARING AT HIS WORKING PRINTER, I said, "Um, oh. Okay."

I then exited the building and walked through the pouring rain to the closest building with a computer lab. This building also happens to be super modern and asymmetrical. It's impossible to navigate.

Confusing building!

I ended up running up and down numerous flights of stairs, encountering locked doors, and practically getting lost before giving up and returning to my classroom.

Empty-handed.

Luckily, my professor was really nice and understanding, but it was quite a frustrating ordeal.

And that mean graduate student better hope he never needs to ask me a favor. Rude.

These boots were NOT made for walking.

Yesterday, I wore my beloved pair of riding boots to QA class since they make me feel like a million bucks (Yes, I just said that). I love the smell and feel of the leather and also how skinny they make my legs appear. They're just gorgeous, gorgeous boots.

Anyway.

I was walking the standard 20-25 minutes to campus when my heels started to hurt.

No! I thought despairingly. I can't be getting...

Blisters.

Really, really awful blisters. They were so painful. All I wanted to do with take off my boots, but I had to keep walking and try to maintain looking fabulous.

Once I finally arrived at class, I immediately took out my phone and began desperately texting friends who lived around campus.

My feet were throbbing. If no one could drive me home, I was prepared to call a taxi cab.

Lucky for me, my knight in a shining Camry (more commonly known as my best friend, Ben), arrived after QA class and drove me home.

My best friend and savior

I pulled off my my boots the second I got into his car and yearned for a pair of innocent flats. They may not make my legs look as thin, but I think I'll be choosing comfort over fashion for a while.