After weeks of holiday celebrations, commitments, and general insanity, I spent the past two days doing…absolutely nothing. It was pretty glorious, not going to lie.
As a result, I woke up this morning feeling completely refreshed and ready for the first Monday of the new year. Wouldn’t it be nice if every Monday began that way? It’s a good thing this one got off on the right foot though: it’s a big one for me.
While I don’t usually talk much about my professional life, I thought I’d share this because, well, work is a part of that fine life balance. A couple months ago, I made the decision to make a switch in my career goals, leaving magazine publishing to head back to the arts, where I’ve always felt at home.
How to achieve that two and a half years out of college? I went on informational interviews, did lots of networking, and eventually decided to work on getting an internship for the new year. In mid-December, I was thrilled to be offered my first choice internship at a major performing arts venue here in the city. While an internship might seem like a step backwards, for me, it is actually a huge leap forward. After a year of professional struggles and dissatisfaction, I couldn’t have asked for a better way to begin the new year.
And so, today is the first day of the next four months of my life.
I’m armed with fresh snacks for my first day: they all needed to be appropriate for storage in my purse, so I’m not that weird girl moving into the office fridge ten minutes after walking through the door. This spread doesn’t include lunch, which I’ll have to buy somewhere due to the previous statement [there's a Whole Foods just a few blocks away, which could become dangerous to my wallet].
I put on some new makeup: Benefit primer and pink cheek stain, keeping my face fresh and bright. Necessities, obviously.
I had a refreshing breakfast: I brewed peppermint tea in soy milk, then cooked my oats in the milky tea with a banana and a splash of vanilla extract. Peppermint-vanilla-almond oats? Thank you, I feel oh-so-refreshed. [And yes, I still had coffee alongside - I didn't sleep enough last night [oh, nerves], so I can most definitely use the extra jolt of caffeine from both coffee and tea.]
I’ve got fresh ginger waiting in my fridge, which will be going right into freshly made carrot-ginger soup for dinner.
And new again: a huge thanks to Zack from 18 Rabbits, who sent me their newest bar flavor, Belle Bananas Foster, a blend of caramelized bananas and dates. Did you just die while reading that description? Because I did. Then I tasted it, and I died all over again. Definitely my favorite! This flavor hits store shelves today, and ps: if you ask at your local Whole Foods, they might just start stocking them.
Finally, I’m working on some changes to refresh the blog – nothing major, but my “about” pages are desperate for a rewrite, and I’d like to give myself a bit of an expanded focus. Food will always be the driving force, but so is balance, and the latter stretches into aspects of life that go beyond the kitchen. If there’s anything you’d like to see more or less of, please don’t hesitate to tell me! I write for myself as much as for all of you, so please don’t be shy. :)
Happy Monday!
Do you feel refreshed this Monday morning? What do you have that is fresh, new, and refreshing?
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leslie, that is so exciting about your new job! thanks for sharing that, it’s very inspiring. i’m so drawn to the art field as well.
you have such an eye & feeling for beauty, like the way you write, you can just tell. i’m sure you will do great today!
i’m feeling really refreshed ’cause i have 10 days off from work/2 weeks left before i start school & i’m going to florida tomorrow!!!!! :D lol
happy twenty-ten ;)
Leslie,
ahh a new job, sounds so amazing! can be nerve racking, but looks like you are ready for your day :) and your breakfast sounds so refreshing and perfect!
omg the new 18rabbit flav, ahh i need to get it haha i loVE those bars, so good, and banana YUM!
:)
my monday ahh idk not too refreshed lol, just like any other day for me i guess, but i think we are going to trader joe’s later, that is always fun, and maybe i will get a refresh peppermint tea at starbucks ;) hehe
xx love you.
Eliza
Congrats on the internship? What will you be doing? That’s so exciting!
Your tea oats idea is phenomenal. I need to try that immediately!
Congrats on the new internship, that’s so great that you’re following your true passion. A great way to start the new year :)
Congrats, girl! I really like your attitude about the internship and hope to adopt a similar one for life changes that may be headed my way. Thanks for the reminder that nothing is a step backward if you’re going where you want.
Congrats! I must say that at 28 I feel like I’m “too old” to start over, but honestly, you have to like what you do (and I currently don’t). It’s so important to have that passion, and if this is something that can provide that outlet for you, go for it!
Plus, I think I would take ANY internship that was close to a Whole Foods, as the nearest one to me is three hours away ;)
Look forward to your changes and the updates.
Wow I really loved learning a bit more about your life outside of food blogging. You are so refreshing to learn about! I totally died when I ate that bar too! Yum!
xoxo
Maggie
Caramelized banana and dates…that sounds like absolute heaven!
Congrats on taking the initiative to switch up the career goals :)
Sara
I’m so excited to hear about how you like the new job. Good luck! I have snacks in my purse too :)
I always start my day with an apple. Having it as the “fruit” component of my breakfast makes me feel fresh on Mondays, and every day of the week!
Hope you have a fabulous day today!
Good luck today! And I really need to try 18 Rabbits :)
I totally wish I read this before I went to Whole Foods! Banana Foster – yummm do we have more at home? Ps my salad only cost 9.43. Pretty good! :)
congrats!! i’m so excited for you!!
Good luck with the new job! Also, I am a firm believer (mostly because I try a lot of them) in internships! Definitely not a step backwards. Especially since I think it takes a lot of courage to switch career goals like that.
congrats on your internship leslie!
i love fresh ginger. you should ty making a stir fry with it and soy sauce. my favorite way ;)
xoxo
Congrats hun on your internship! What a great way to start out the new year. I’ve been seeing those new 18 Rabbit bars around the blog world and I want one! I haven’t found a store in my city yet that carries them :(
I hope your internship is everything you wanted it to be, and that the start of your year has been a great one so far :)
Congratulations again, Leslie! I’m so happy for you and can’t wait to hear all about it once you’re settled in.
Tea in oats? Sounds heavenly!
Congrats on your new opportunity! It is so hard to do things that we love nowadays, but you sound very determined and that you really worked hard to get what you deserve–that’s exciting :)
I definitely feel refreshed, I think 2010 is going to be a great year!
Sorry it’s been awhile, Leslie.
I’m so happy for your internship opportunity. I hope that the environment and coworkers are all good karma.
Sincerely,
A @ Still Life
CONGRATS on your internship!