Happy (almost) Friday! It's still hot on the east coast- almost ridiculously so, to be honest- so I'm spending my free time preparing for my next French immersion class, catching up on some TV, and doing a little online window shopping in hopes of cooler weather!

A few of my current favorite (and pretty random...) links around the web...

The best $15 I've spent this week: you probably need this brush! I have pretty dry hair, and I've been impressed so far at how well this brush helps keep my hair's natural oils distributed throughout its length, especially when used before going to bed.

The post-grad struggle, summarized by tumblr: I'll be honest, I complain about life post-graduation and the ever-frustrating job hunt quite a bit. On a daily basis, I find it hard to remember that I'm one of many recent grads to be experiencing the same frustrations and challenges- articles like these bring a little humor into #TheStruggle of being a young 20-something!

One of my favorite parts of my stint in New York, any of the cities I've lived in and visited, was experiencing  the rich history all around me. This website allows you to pick a location in New York and view a library of old photos taken in that location, some dating back to 1800. I found my old address on the map, and parts of Madison and 5th Avenues and Central Park certainly looked a bit different 100 years ago!

Speaking of cooler weather, my favorite Wool Sidewalk Skirts are back at J Crew Factory. I love pairing these with tights and boots through the late fall and winter, and with Jacks into the spring. I love the cabernet color linked above, but I'm also debating whether I can pull off this one without looking like I'm wearing a school uniform ;) This style in navy looks cute as well!

Real talk: I've dealt with chronic anxiety since I was pretty young. As much of an obstacle as it can be in many aspects of my life, it really is just part of who I am. I'm more than happy to see anxiety disorders gaining more mainstream exposure, like this interview with Emma Stone about her experience growing up with anxiety!
And finally, 24 frustrating things that happened on Gilmore Girls. Like many people my age, I'm a big Gilmore Girls fan- I binge-watched the full series a few years ago with my Mom, and of course saw the revival most recently. I *think* I'm still #TeamLogan. But this article makes some good points. I was annoyed with Rory's temporary dropping out of Yale, and Lorelei and Christopher's whole saga just complicated things. It's still one of my favorite shows, but I have to strongly agree with this: Lane belonged with Dave. Just saying ;)

Have a great weekend, and last few days of September!

XOXO,
Emily

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As September rolled around, my Mom joked that she actually missed back to school shopping. For the first time in who knows how many years, there is no purchasing of supplies of textbooks or lugging anything into campus housing! As a December grad, this is the first time I haven't been headed back to school in the Fall.

Instead, I'll be spending my free time tackling something I've been meaning to do for a while- practicing (and improving!) my French skills. Instead of back to school, it's back to full immersion French classes (at French Academy DC) for me!

I'm both nervous and pretty excited- I actually started studying French early by American standards. Starting in seventh grade, we had the option of adding French or Spanish to our schedule. I was already interested in French, and had taken a short course for middle schoolers the previous Summer. I was so excited to start- I decorated my binder, bought my first French dictionary, and dutifully studied my vocabulary and conjugations. I had an amazing French teacher through middle school, and it quickly became one of my favorite subjects.

As I've mentioned before, my department required all undergraduates to pick a language to study through the 300 level. Of course, I picked French, making it my minor. Here's the kicker- no matter how much quality academic instruction you have, it's nearly impossible to become fluent in a foreign language without living in a country that speaks said language.

As a result, my French is very academic- I can read and write much better than I can understand. This was confirmed during my time interning at the United Nations- some of my attempts to practice by listening to speeches on complex political and humanitarian issues given by native speakers weren't particularly successful :)

This is just another little step in my path towards ultimately entering the diplomatic world, so I'll face my fear of actually speaking up in my second language, gather up my notebooks, and enjoy my back to class, but not back to school :)

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