Big Girls Don’t Cry

OH, HI FRIENDS. It’s been a minute.

Let me begin by addressing my last blog post – it wasn’t a roaring success, as you may have guessed (did you bet against me? I don’t blame you). Some things have stuck, like committing to having breakfast every morning and wearing sunscreen. To be honest, I’m surprised anything stuck at all.

Lots of news:

• Our sailor is home! I think we missed him almost as much as he missed land. Dominic has been back for a few weeks now and is settling into his new apartment and getting it ready for Luz’s homecoming. He was nothing short of a godsend when it came to moving out of my old place. Now I get to relish in having a big brother close (but not too close) to help a sister out.
• The Pensacola Half Marathon is in early November and we’re now just shy of 12 weeks away, so training is in full effect. We’re trying to get the whole Flores sibling squad on board this go-round (lookin’ at you, Dominic). Here’s to another 12 weeks of soreness and exhaustion and victory – hopefully this time there will be less tears.
• I’m writing this from the same desk I sat as an intern… except today I’m full-time, baby! That’s right, the stars aligned and the voodoo magic kicked in and my corporate internship offered me a full-time marketing position. I’ve been at it for a couple of weeks and there’s tons of work to be done. Too blessed to be stressed.
• My job offer came at maybe the very last reasonable moment, but after lots (and lots and lots) of struggle I have moved in to my big girl one bedroom apartment! I love it so much. I love the yard, I love that it’s not a shoebox, I love the giant kitchen, and I love it despite not being fully furnished. I’ll definitely share some pictures as I fill it up.

General Concerns About Adulthood

If I had to pick something that I thought was wholly representative of what it’s like to be an adult, it would be the fine print on the bottom of every single document you’ve carelessly clicked through or signed off on up to this point. Here are the questions I have (so far):

• What the hell is a 401K and how do I deal?
• There are so many types of insurance. Do I really need all of this?
• MY PAYCHECK ISN’T AS BIG AS I WAS ANTICIPATING WHAT HAPPENED?!
• How do people sit at their desks for forty hours a week?
• Why am I still tired after 8 hours of sleep?
• HOW DO YOU MEET PEOPLE OUTSIDE OF COLLEGE?????

Joys of Being an Adult

Short, but sweet:

• Coming home from work and not having to study – a luxury I did not enjoy as an undergraduate
• Happy hours
• Paying for things on my own – a double-edged sword; trying to look at it more as a privilege than a burden
• Cherished down time – earlier this summer I found that I had too much free time and I constantly felt listless and unproductive
• All of the knowledge that comes with having failed so hard, so often in previous years

Share with me your concerns and joys of adulthood, won’t you? Just don’t come here looking for answers quite yet.

Girl on Fire

“So go. Go get crazy tonight and resist the feeling of ickiness you have the next morning about drinking too much or eating too much and just be like, ‘Yeah, I did that. It was cool.’ Then move on. Make some bad decisions tonight and blame it all on me, honey.” – Ryan O’Connell

At this point in my life, all of my friends are 21 and older. It’s been a constant blessing/struggle to have skipped a grade and made this batch of friends who are older than me. Finally, (finally,) I caught up with everyone last Monday at midnight. My group of friends and I erupted into screams and hugs when the clock struck midnight – I’m sort of the anti-Cinderella – and I gleefully exchanged my 20-year-old x’s for a 21-year-old wristband. Shots were had, my dear friend Helie BLESSED me by rapping Nicki Minaj’s ‘Super Bass’ on stage and then my pal Nick and I let everyone know that we wanted No Scrubs. I stumbled out that night after settling my enormous bar tab and felt that I had done the occasion right.

My best friend and guest for the week, Sarah, told me that I could get my birthday present from her after my presentation. It must be alcohol, I thought, that’s why she wants to wait until after my presentation. That makes sense. When I opened the door of my apartment, she was screaming and jumping in excitement and had me sit in front of her laptop with her camera pointed at me. What I watched was not at all what I was expecting.

For the entire week prior, Sarah harassed my family and friends to send her videos and messages telling me what they liked best about me, wishing me a happy 21st birthday and congratulating me on graduation. Anyone who knows me knows that I am incredibly sentimental and could cry at the drop of a hat, so needless to say this video compilation turned me into a puddle. I was laughing and crying so much that I got a headache from the rush. I have the best friend in the world.

After an absurdly long nap, I was ready to hit the town. I put on my party dress and my birthday sign, appropriately crafted as the grandma emoji (major props to my girl Megan), and set out determined to cross everything off the list. The number one thing was to snapchat every task listed, so I’m sorry for the nearly 600 second snap story.

Graduation took place on Saturday, and preparing for that entailed laying out by the lake and taking silly grad pictures. The ceremony itself was admittedly underwhelming, but I was glad to have the two greatest friends/J-school colleagues by my side. Truly, the best part of the weekend was being with my family and taking them on a Gainesville food tour. (I love you, Crane Ramen.)

Everyone wants to know: so what’s next? I sincerely wish I had an answer for you. I’m still trying to land something and this is the reality of life after college – despite everyone telling you how smart you are and how you’re “gonna do so well,” getting a job after college is hard and terrifying. I’ve barely begun this process and I ache thinking about if something will happen or how long it will take.

What I can say with confidence is that it will eventually happen for me. And you better believe I’m gonna kick ass.