the little things

I saw this quote yesterday that stated, “What is the smallest thing that you are grateful for today?” 

And then I had an epiphany. 

via

Well, not the kind of epiphany that Homer has in the Simpson’s Movie (the best cinematic scene of all time, in my humble opinion), but literally something five notches below that on a scale from average to Homer Simpson’s epiphany. 

I think we all try to make the most of our days. We feel most productive when we’re doing more, finishing more projects, working out more minutes, eating healthier. Whatever. The more we do in a day the more we feel accomplished. At least I do. But the more I do in the day the less I have time to focus on the little things. Sometimes these little things are the most important.

Brace yourself because I’m about to get as cheesy as the literal cheese aisle in your local grocery store. 

Don’t say I didn’t warn you. 

But after I read that quote yesterday, I started noticing the little things. 

I realized how good my canned chili was. 
I noticed how awesome my co-workers are and our relationship is. 
I remembered that my laptop still works even though there were a few hours last semester that it wouldn’t work after I spilled water all over it. 
I realized how lucky I am to watch the sunset on my way home from work. 

Sure, it’s important to get shit done, but it’s also important to recognize the little things during your day and how grateful I am for them. Those little moments, when noticed, can add up and make you feel so warm and fuzzy and happy and lucky and alive. (heh, there’s the cheese I warned you about)

Anyways, thanks for reading and I hope you have a wonderful day filled with little moments of gratefulness. 

xo
Chloe 

a little nervous, but all will be ok

Lately, I’ve been struggling with anxiety of the future. For my entire life, up until this point, I haven’t had to question what the future would hold. I knew that fifth grade came after fourth. I knew that high school would definitely come after middle. I knew that once I got into college that I would be there for the next four years. But as my senior year is coming to an abrupt end, I’m scared. 

I’m scared I’m going to graduate without a job. I’m scared that I’ll have to depend on my parents longer than I should. I’m scared that I won’t know where to live. Honestly, being scared of so many things is making me scared that I’m losing myself. I’m usually a person that goes with the flow, that doesn’t really think too much about the future, that knows that things will work out. And right now, I’m not that person… and I hate it. 

I was talking to one of my favorite professors the other day about all these thoughts that I’d been having lately and he said, “Chloe, I know it sucks, but people like you are the ones that are going to end up being ok, because being scared is what drives you to succeed.”

And then I took a deep breath. And now I’m less nervous. Still nervous 1000%, but definitely less. I have no idea where I’ll be five months from today, but I just have to keep reminding myself that that is exactly what life is all about — figuring it out as you go. 

thanks for reading
xox
chloe

dear god, it's me, chloe

In my typography class, we had critiques on a recent project that we just completed. The project was actually showcased in one of our town’s museums which was an amazing experience. You could say I’m a ~real~ artist now. Just kidding. 

But anyways, during our critique one of the girls in my class stood up and shared a story about her piece. On her piece she had tidbits of negative pieces from her journal throughout her years on Earth. 

I thought the fact that she chose only the negative lines to be fascinating ,and then I started thinking about myself. When I was home over Thanksgiving break I found one of my old “diaries” that literally contained three written pages of the 200 pages it was as a whole. These three pages that I actually wrote were negative things that happened during my senior year of high school. Mostly about boys. I found it super interesting that I only took the time to write something when it was negative. Do you think we (I) don’t write positive things in our (my) lives because we’d rather feel them again, and by writing them down we think it won’t? Or do we mostly write negative things to help us mentally understand what makes them negative? Or to look back on and realize how far we’ve come? 

I think there’s something enchanting about finding raw writings from the past. I always say I’m going to write in a journal but I can never manage to keep writing longer than for what seems like  three days. I’ve been in a little mental funk for the past few days and I know the feelings will pass, but as a creature of habit I am sharing that I’m having these negative feelings / perceptions because they too will pass with time.

Also, here are a few pictures of my art installation if you’re interested. 

thanks for reading
xox
chloe

inspired

Do you ever get so inspired that you feel like you’re walking on a cloud? Like some weird air of confidence is surrounding you? Well, today it happened to me. I’m not sure how long it’ll last, but I feel my creative juices flowing. I’m excited about applying for jobs, I’m motivated to make my homework the best it can be. I’m just pumped. 

This mood was kickstarted by a coffee date I had this morning with my cousin. Well he’s my mom’s cousin, so I guess that makes him my second cousin, but regardless, we’re some kind of cousin. His name is Andy and he’s been in the business that I want to go into for about 20 years. He knows what he’s talking about, his work is extremely impressive, and I really trust his opinion. We sat down for a few hours and talked about my work, my life, my thoughts on the future, and he simply left me feeling inspired. I think there’s something extremely important about sitting down with someone you respect in your field and just gaining insight from their history and path. I know this wasn’t quite a “networking” meeting considering we’re family, but I think if you’re nervous about the whole “networking” idea, push yourself to move outside your comfort zone and just go to coffee with someone you respect. You’ll leave feeling inspired, I promise. 

thanks for reading
chloe

h&m baby

H&M has been on their A-game lately. You know when you’re in the mood to shop, but also don’t want to shop because sifting through the thousands of items stores has is more exhausting than running anything over 3 miles. I know you know the feeling. But, I was procrastinating homework (as per usual) and I stumbled across H&M’s website and I fell in love with so many pieces. I made a little collage of everything that’s on my wishlist currently so take a look / feel free to gift me any of these items. My birthday isn’t that far away…  

mom jeans | grey sweater | sneakers |

orange sweater | white sweater | jacket

thanks for reading!
xox
chloe

unconditional love

I want to talk about my sorority for a second. Before you go rolling your eyes, just know that sororities aren’t like how they are perceived in movies, TV, and even the news. Sure, we have social events and a lot of us are very social in general, but my sorority means a lot to me. And don’t you worry, my family makes plenty of fun of me when I get sentimental or cheesy about it, but it’s the truth. 

I have a lot I could say about how or why it means so much to me, but I’ll share about my sorority “family” first. If you’re not familiar, when you join a sorority you’re given a “big” and then when you’re a sophomore you get a “little” and then your littles get littles and so on. I’m lucky enough to have an amazing family which is a very special thing.

I happened to hangout with my G-Little today in between classes because I randomly had to go to my sorority house for a second and bumped into her. We ended up talking in the hallway and then her room for over an hour and it was wonderful. You know when you connect with someone and want to be there for them and know that they’ll always be there for you as well? That’s how I feel about my whole family. I hope they know how special they are to me, and having these people in my life is something I don’t take for granted. 

So if you’re in my GPhi Fam and you’re reading this, know how much I appreciate your friendship and unconditional love and know that I’m always here for you no matter what. 

Thanks for reading
chloe