i might be a messy eater, but i know how to clean

Although anyone who knows me, or has ridden in my car (or seen my room or closet) might not believe this, yesterday I impressed everybody with my organizational skills...

I know you didn’t think I had them, but I do! For one of our final intern tasks Kylie and I organized the craft closet, and its so beautiful now. The writing utensils are organized by category, the wrapping paper by season, the glitter has its own Lazy Susan – I could go on and on.

I’m not sure if I’m becoming an organized person or if I just like organizing other people’s stuff more than my own. I’m guessing it’s the latter, but we’ll just have to wait and see! Now that I know I have it in me, maybe my car will stay trash free and I’ll stop leaving dishes in my room.

The other interns are all homeward bound tomorrow morning, and after a weekend with SB and Kaiti, three more days of work, and a visit from Jonathan (thanks to Bob and Lisa!) I’ll be home too. I’m sad to leave people I’ve grown to love this summer, but I feel like I’ve gotten more than I hoped for out of my time in New York and I’m ready to head back down South.

I miss Athens and my family and my roommates and Chick-fil-a and sweet tea!

christmas in july

Yesterday I went to work and played with toys - - well, sort of ...

The Good Housekeeping Research Institute upstairs recruited interns to help set up toys for tons of kids who will pile into their office for the next two weeks.

GHRI tests products that are featured in Good Housekeeping and gives worthwhile products a seal of approval. Every Christmas, they put out a study on new toys – how kids react to them, how easy they are to set up, etc. – and in the magazine world we're already gearing up for the December issue.

I made lots of friendship bracelets, set up a recycled paper circus and most impressively… built the Lego rocket launcher above! Okay, I didn’t build it all by myself, but I did lend lots of Lego skills I didn’t know I had.

I was exhausted after work and had a brief tired meltdown on the phone with my mom (…I guess all those toys took it out of me?), but after dinner and a nap, Tatum and I hosted a lovely little birthday party for her friend Hannah.

We had 3-Buck-Chuck, donuts from The Donut Pub down the street and lots of little tea candles to make our apartment feel homey.

seventeen going on fifty

Yesterday a ton of other interns and I went to a Seventeen Magazine event to be the background crowd when it airs on MTV. Kylie and I almost left before it started, because we had work to do - but we stayed and I'm so glad we did.

The event was held for 5 real girls (as in not models or famous people) who are competing to be on the cover of Seventeen. Each girl gave a speech about why she should win, and each speech was more amazing than the one before.

These girls were 16 to 20 and they've accomplished so much. One was homeless and started her own fashion business, not to mention 2 trips to the White House to discuss the importance of entrepreneurial education with Obama. Another is in the running to be the first female Indy 500 racer.

I left with a cookies 'n cream cupcake in hand, inspired to work EXTRA hard at my emails and pitches and paperwork.

summer cleaning

This is what Kylie and I did today...

BEFORE

AFTER

Look how pretty and satisfying it is now!

We also taste tested 20 types of balsamic vinegar, but we volunteered for that.

Happy early weekend!

a sweet surprise

Instead of running up to Town and Country to make copies or grabbing a back issue from the floor below, today my fellow intern Kylie and I got to run a more exciting errand ...

We went to Magnolia Bakery to buy cupcakes!

There are three Magnolias in New York, and we dropped by one on the upper West side. The distressed checkerboard floor,bead board ceiling and cheery yellow walls were adorable. Armed with GH money, we bought one of almost every cupcake (and since we're going to the meeting later we each get one too!).

We also stopped by Whole Foods to pick up some pink lemonade. The whole day wasn't fun and games (we spent a portion of it cleaning out files into a dumpster), but walking to Magnolia's was a welcomed break from sitting inside on a sunny day. It's dangerously close to my normal route home, so I'm sure I'll be back soon.

my daily commute

Well, so much for promising to blog all the time now that I'm in New York. Now that I've finished my first week and settled into a routine I hope to do better!

New York has been absolutely wonderful. Every morning I wake up, have coffee on my aunt and uncle's terrace and look out at the city and the Hudson River. In other words, I wake up and feel like I'm living in a movie or romantic comedy which is my dream come true. I leave Brian and Jodey's apartment between 8 or 9 every day and walk

past street vendors

and taxis

and flower shops, and cafes, and Lincoln Center, and countless New Yorkers who flood the side walks. My commute ends at Columbus Circle, near the bottom left corner of Central Park.

I work at the Hearst Tower, and it's one of the coolest building's I've ever set foot in. The bottom half is an old building from when Hearst first started, and a tall, twisting, modern glass tower sits on top. The Good Housekeeping office is on the 28th floor, surrounded by windows, so we get to look out at the city while we work.

I love my job so far. I make copies and run errands like all interns, but I also get to do a lot of legitimate tasks. I've pitched books, mom blogs and kids health trends, and I even read an unpublished book manuscript. Unlike some magazines (whose interns I've met at lunch) GH's staff is incredibly kind and helpful. They go out of their way to answer questions and make us feel like part of the team.

I need to get back to researching mom blogs (let me know if you've seen any good ones), but I will try to share New York tidbits more often!

pain and wonder

That's the title of a paper I turned in yesterday morning, but it's also a fitting summary of my week. The past five days have been filled with intense stress and wonderful surprises. Yesterday I had to turn in a paper I started on Tuesday and give an hour long group presentation that counts for half my grade - thus the pain. The work load was daunting, so I did time in my favorite coffee shops, most notably Ike and Jane where I had a thin mint doughnut and chai latte.

I got home late Wednesday night anxious about the morning ahead and expecting to fall asleep in my disaster of a room. Literally - it was the messiest a room has ever been. But while I was studying, my roommate Brittany had cleaned up everything! She even swept and dusted.

The next morning, I furiously put the final touches on my paper and practiced my presentation, but when I got to class there was a note saying my teacher couldn't make it and the presentation would have to wait til Tuesday.

I walked out of Park Hall elated. My room was clean, my work was finished, the sun was shining and all I had to do was go home and celebrate Emily's 21st birthday!

Also, the most wonderful surprise of all was that Good Housekeeping offered me an internship in NYC this summer!