She Came In Through the Bathroom Window

So, I locked myself out of my apartment Saturday morning.

It was traumatic.

I had Mia (my mom's dog) over for a sleepover Friday night because it was her birthday. Jamie, our best friend (and human), came over on Friday night for some pizza and dranks. So Mia was psyched and that was her birthday gift from me.

Saturday morning I woke up and needed to do laundry. My apartment has a back door, which is the one I regularly use, and a front door, which leads to the front hall and only gets used when I'm doing laundry. The back door has a lock on the door knob and a deadbolt lock. The front door just has a deadbolt lock.

I grabbed the laundry and headed for the front door. Mia tried to follow me, but the basement is really not even safe for humans so my precious puppy definitely is not allowed down there. "Stay here!" I told her, and closed the front door.

I closed the front door.

The deadbolt clicked into place. Shit.

I turned the handle, hoping that by some miracle it didn't catch and lock. No such luck. Okay, can't get back in that way. I went down and put the laundry in. What else was I supposed to do? These towels weren't gonna wash themselves. I figured I could get outside from the basement and just use the spare key I keep hidden to get in through the backdoor. I was in my pajamas, but this would be super sneaky and no one would see me.

Then I remembered that I lock the deadbolt on the back door at night. Dammit. If only I wasn't afraid of someone breaking in and killing me in my sleep! I hoped that maybe I'd forgotten to lock the deadbolt the night before, just maybe. So I went to open the bulkhead that opens into the backyard. Nope. It was either super stuck or locked from the outside. My only other option was the front door. That opens directly on to a busy street.

I am wearing boxer shorts and a tshirt and it's March in New England. I dug a trench coat out of storage so now I look like I'm naked except for a trench coat and slippers, and I head out the front door and hustle around to the back and get my spare key.

But sure enough, the deadbolt is locked. I start to whimper to myself as Mia barks on the other side of the door.

"Lassie! Unlock the door Lassie!" I called inside. Silence. Then the pitter-patter of paws walking away from the door.

Jerk.

I am completely locked out with no hope of getting inside. Landlord is away for the weekend (or at least I assumed, since he hadn't been home in a day or so) and Frank Next Door wasn't home either. That ends the list of neighbors I've spoken to. I wanted to cry.

I had no choice but to try and break in. There's a window on the porch which I obviously keep locked to keep out those killers I worry about. I contemplated breaking the window to unlock it but then decided I'd better look for other options first.

I settled on the bathroom window, because it just so happened to already have a missing pane so I could reach through and unlock it, and it also happened to have a pile of wood under it that I could put a deck chair on top of and climb up to the window.

So, my apartment is totally killer-proof.

I climbed up my makeshift ladder and shoved that damn window open and me and my trench coat and boxer shorts flashed everyone driving by at that moment as I heaved myself through the window.

I was in!

I hurried to find poor Mia, who I was sure would be a nervous wreck. I knew I was shaken up and traumatized and so happy I managed to MacGyver my way back into my apartment.

She was sitting in the living room with her toy, happy as a clam. She looked up at me as if to say "Oh hey, you're back! That's nice."

Jerk.

The Landlord Files

So. I kind of stalk my landlord.

Maybe not stalk, per se, but I consider myself very tuned in to his life.

Okay, maybe not "very tuned in" so much as I observe what I can and then make up stories about him.

This is normal, right?

We live in a two family house. He lives upstairs and I live downstairs. We both live alone. Like he's not making stories up about my life too.

For instance, when I first moved in he said he was hardly ever home because he stayed at his girlfriend's all the time.

This is false. He is ALWAYS HOME. And he NEVER MOVES. Like, he is the most sedentary person I've ever witnessed. I never hear him walking and he barely leaves the house. He used to go to work every morning (I think he does construction? He dresses like he does, anyway), but a few months ago he just kind of stopped.

So naturally I assume he lost his job and his girlfriend broke up with him. Which was sad. So I was all "Landlord, me too. Well, not the job, but we are both here alone. Should we like, party or something? I notice you recycle an awful lot of beer bottles. I'm always down for a drink. You wanna come down and watch the Bachelor Monday night?"

Okay, I didn't actually say any of that because despite the fact that we sort of live together, I never see him. And I wouldn't talk to him if I did. I'm afraid he'll ask where Ex-Boyfriend went and it will be A Situation. So I'm just hoping he's as dumb as I think he is and he hasn't noticed.

So for now I just observe and judge. I'm sure this is normal...right?

January 2013 Recap

Well 2013 is here and I feel like it's kicking my ass a little bit. January was a hard month.

Things at work got iffy there for a few weeks and it was rough. Happily, things have settled down and are looking up. I'm glad that was short lived. Is there any worse feeling than hating your job and panicking about what you're going to do about it? Well yeah, actually, there are. Which brings me to my next point:

Breakups are hard, man. I'm going to leave it at that.

On the bright side, I did reach my fitness goals for January! I'm back into a workout routine. It sadly doesn't include nearly enough cardio right now, because I cancelled my gym membership (yup, the only person in the world who cancels a gym membership in January) and I'm waiting for the new one they're putting in at work to be open.

I did manage to run outside on a couple of warm days so that was good. Most importantly, I lost five pounds! Ten more to go! I'm aiming for four or five pounds a month, so I'm glad I at least got that off to a good start.

Not much else happened in January, apparently. I bought a heated blanket and saw Les Mis, according to Facebook.

Speaking of movies, I also saw Silverlinings Playbook. SO GOOD. GO SEE IT NOW. For real you guys.

February is off to a promising start, though I'm still in hibernation mode. It IS winter, after all. I'm okay with this. I am sticking by my Winter of Me philosophy and spending time with myself. It may seem boring and antisocial, but it feels right, so it must be what I need right now. I'm a big believer in going with your gut.

I'm not sad to see you go, January. February: please be kind!

Know When to Walk Away, Know When to Run

I can't think of a time when I have ever regretted quitting something. I have quit quite a few things in my life and I don't look back on any of them and think "Man, I wish I'd stuck with that."

I've quit tee-ball, figure skating, gymnastics, dance classes, cheerleading, and playing the flute. I quit a job at a clothing store. I dropped multiple classes in college. I've quit diets, exercise programs and activity groups. I climbed almost to the top of a mountain once, then, with the peak in sight, decided I'd had enough.

People always make such a big deal about quitting something. "Don't quit," they tell you, "you'll only regret it." Or, "What a quitter! I can't believe you!" But I don't think there's anything wrong with it. Why continue doing something you don't like? Something that isn't making you happy, or leaving you with a sense of fulfillment?

It didn't matter to me if I made it to the top of that damn mountain or not. It still doesn't bother me now. I despised figure skating. I had no qualms about leaving that behind. Quitting isn't a sign of weakness, it's a sign of being in tune with who you are and what you want.

Of course, there are some major things that can't be quit so easily. They might require planning and strategizing. People might be relying on you not to quit. Sometimes you have to stick things out even though you really don't want to. As we get older, life becomes more and more filled with things we have to do, even though we don't want to. That's why I think it's so important to get rid of the things we can. The annoyances, the chores, the drudgery.

It's something I've been thinking about a lot lately. What can stay in my life, what can go. What I want more of, what I want less of. The conclusion I've come to is that sometimes it's okay to be a quitter.

Sparkle is a Color: I'm Back!

I'm back! 

Welcome to the new Sparkle is a Color! I've missed my little blog.

As you can see, she's gotten a bit of a facelift. I've been mucking about in Photoshop & Photoshop Elements and slowly but surely I'm getting the hang of some things! Of course, I've only been playing with the free trials, so once they run out I'm screwed. I still have a few more tweaks to make, but I was too excited to get back to blogging to wait for it to be finished.

Henceforth Sparkle is a Color is a lifestyle blog chronicling my life and all the things I love about it. I've missed writing about my little adventures and things going on in my life. I've missed taking the occasional outfit photo too, so expect some of those to be thrown in as well.

I'm gonna keep it pretty lax around here - blogging when I feel inspired and not forcing myself to write something when I'm just not feeling it.

You can also expect more words and journal type posts that won't be photo-centric.

My life is full of exciting changes and opportunities right now and I can't wait to start chronicling everything!

Thanks for joining in on my journey.

xx, Katrina

Under Construction

via

So I know I've been a crap blogger lately. I really want to do SOMETHING with this space, but I haven't been quite sure what yet.

I think I finally have a plan though, and a direction I'd like to go in, so I'm pretty excited about changing things up around here.

Only problem is I totally don't have time for this any time soon, ha. I'm doing NaNoWriMo this year so November is booked solid. December is the holidays and it seems silly to start something in December when I can just wait for the New Year.

So that's what I'm doing. First week in January there will be a new, fancy and super fabulous Sparkle is a Color. I have a lot of major life changes coming up, so I hope this blog will be a place to document them. I also might get back to some outfit pictures since a co-worker suggested I become a fashion blogger, haha (little does she know of my lackluster past as one!).

Hope you all have a lovely holiday season and I'll see you all back here in January!

xx, Katrina

what i saw on my run today

There's a big old cemetery in my neighborhood that I always run past. The trees there are all the Good Trees. The ones that turn the best colors in the fall. This particular section has all the oldest graves. I like peeking through the fence and reading what's left of the inscriptions as I jog on past.

Someday I'll go inside and wander around, imagine what my town must have been like when these people were living here. I tend to find cemeteries peaceful rather than spooky. Living in New England there are lots and lots of old cemeteries to explore. If you're from the area or are ever visiting, and you are also a weirdo who finds cemeteries peaceful you should go out to Concord and check out Sleepy Hollow cemetery. Worth it.

how i budget

For some reason, lately I've been talking a lot to friends about budgeting and how I handle my money versus how they handle theirs. I find it fascinating to hear how other people divvy up their paychecks and how they prioritize versus what I do. I could talk about these things for hours. Probably because deeply at the root of my being is one simple fact:

I love money.

I love making it, I love spending it, and I love saving it.

I know that in order to have the life I dream of I need to be smart about my money. No one is going to hand me billions of dollars. No one is going to provide these things for me but myself. I've been making a conscious effort lately to really up my game as far as my financial planning goes. I am by NO MEANS an expert and it's been a lot of trial and error along the way to find what works for me (I've talked about this before). But I think I've finally found a plan that works for me and I figured I would share it in case it helps anyone else.

First off, I am obsessed with LearnVest.com. It's a financial website geared towards helping women be more financially savvy, but I think it is a great resource for anyone. I have an account set up there which links all my bank accounts and credit cards and gives me a nice (and pretty!) overview of my finances. It has made it ridiculously easy to keep an eye on where my money is going.

There are lots of other sites out there like this one - Mint.com is another popular one. I used to use Mint, but, simply put, I didn't like it. Use what works for you, be it another website, an app on your phone, a spreadsheet, or crayons and scrap paper. Whatever! As long as it keeps you organized and accountable you're golden.

The best tip I have for budgeting your money is one I got from LearnVest. They recommend the 50/20/30 rule: 50% of your take home pay should go to necessities - rent, utilities, transportation, food. 20% goes to debt repayment and savings/retirement. 30% is leftover for your lifestyle - eating out, shopping, etc. It make it really easy to see where you're spending too much or too little and adjust accordingly. For instance, it turned out I wasn't spending 50% of my pay on necessities, so I was able to bump up my savings and lifestyle sections.

The 50/20/30 rule is so much easier than tracking every cent that goes in or out of your wallet. It allows you to focus your spending and saving without having to be a stickler. And if you're already using a money management website or system it should be really easy for you to see where your money is going.

The next financial challenge I plan on tacking is investing. I'm not kidding when I say I want a plushy life, so anything I can do to up my net worth is something I want to look into. Investing is something I know NOTHING about so this should be an interesting adventure. I'm thinking about starting to set aside some money purely to invest and seeing how it goes.

Any of you financial experts? Have any tips on investing or budgeting? I want to hear them! No, seriously, tell me because I wasn't kidding when I said I am obsessed with money.

Which now that I think about it is super weird since I hate math. Huh.

*This post is in no way affiliated with LearnVest. I'm just seriously obsessed. So dorky.

photos via learnvest.com and mint.com

twenty minutes

I ran for twenty minutes without stopping today. Who am I?! That has been the one day of Couch to 5k that I've been stuck on. My legs kept giving out, my calves screaming in pain after barely ten minutes. 

I switched up my sneakers and now the calf pain is essentially gone and I can run much further than I could before. I decided to finally tackle the 20 minutes of running, no walking. It went so well! I felt like I could even keep going once the 20 minutes was up (I didn't, baby steps here people). I'm still extremely slow, but right now I'm focusing on endurance rather than speed or distance. 

Next week I'm going to work on improving my time for a mile. I'd like to try to add in more running days, even if it's just a mile. My town has a 5k coming up on November 4th, and I'm thinking about signing up. I'm NOWHERE near being ready for it, but maybe it will give me something to work towards?

Labor Day Weekend

Three day weekends are both the best and worst things ever. On the one hand - three days off! On the other hand - not enough. This Labor Day weekend was surprisingly jam-packed, now that I'm looking back on it.

Friday night Boyfriend and I went out for fondue. He'd never had it before and I don't pass up the opportunity to eat melted cheese and chocolate.

Saturday was a much needed day of cleaning and shopping. The shopping was a reward for all the cleaning I did, ha.

Then Sunday Boyfriend and I had big plans to go skydiving. The skydiving place we were going to is about an hour away so we got up early and stopped for breakfast on the way out there. And it was the best. Breakfast. Ever. Oh my lord.

I don't normally eat eggs - I don't even LIKE eggs, but for some reason I felt like ordering eggs. So I did. And they were delicious.

We ended up not skydiving due to heavy cloud
cover, so we had to re-schedule our jump. The good news about having to drive back out there is getting breakfast again. ;)

 We did manage to take a bunch of pictures while we were waiting to find out if we could jump:

... first time he sneezed in the middle.

Then he blinked.

Nailed it.

 Today was spent doing MORE shopping with mom (really just accompanying her on her errands) and then hanging out with Mia, who is being a geisha girl for Halloween:

All in all a successful weekend!

Fall Bucket List

Fall Bucket List by sparkleisacolor on Polyvore

That Time I Went Camping, or When There's a Thunderstorm You Die

I've never been camping. In my life. Ever.

I have no desire to sleep outside, in the dirt, under trees, with bugs and creatures. Camping also usually involves lakes, which I do not do.

I don't understand why we worked so hard, as humans, to evolve and build sophisticated and comfortable homes to live in just to turn around and sleep outside. Our ancestors would be appalled.

But last week all my friends were going camping. I knew they would be having fun and making memories without me. WHICH IS UNACCEPTABLE. No joy or happiness is allowed without me.

So I put on my big girl pants and I went camping.

And I had fun.

I only stayed for one night, because hello, I have always assumed I'd hate camping. I didn't want to be miserable and ruin everyone's trip. I'm so courteous.

But really, it wasn't bad, for the one night. The best part was my BFF Helen is the one who goes camping every year with her family and childhood friends. I have been graciously adopted into the group. Which means that Helen's supremely awesome mother made sure we were well fed. We just had to show up with a travel mug for camp coffee.

I was provided with a tent and air mattress, since due to the fact I have a ROOF and a BED I've never needed them.

Basically I was fairly pampered. I've heard the rest of the week was just as pampering, so next year I'm thinking I'll stay a few more nights.

But not the whole week, I'm not that delusional.

some of my chucklehead camping buddies

the tent had a doggie door!

 

 

before and after. you don't need this much stuff to stay in a hotel.

surveying the unpacking chaos

the neighbors had some interesting outfits

koala-ing is required

Fourth of July 2012

Crafting so hard.

Pinterest recipe for the win!

Cupcakes...mmmm.

I love fresh strawberries.

AMERICA.

Used my sunglasses as a "filter" and the Phonto app.

AMERICA. SPARKLES.

Wee.

Someone built this across the street from the cottage we stay in. JEALOUS.

2getha 4eva.

Beach love.

Um hello delicious.

For fourth of July this year the bestie and I headed down the Cape like the good old days! We used to go down for the first week in July every year, but once we hit college and started working we stopped going. It was super awesome to be able to get back down there this year, even if it was only for a night.

I made some flag shorts and festive cupcakes (the 5th was also the BFF's birthday!) and we watched fireworks on the beach. It couldn't have been more perfect and we capped the whole time off with an ice cream sundae on the way home.

Taco Tuesday

It was Taco Tuesday today at our house. They were delicious and an excellent way to start my first official day of vacation.

Boyfriend ate SIX. I'm both frightened and impressed.

absentee

Sorry I've been MIA here lately. Life has just been all over the place, but in the best ways possible.

Things have changed majorly at work, and it's awesome. I have a new position and our department has been restructured and things are really looking up. I'm so glad, since I was beginning to panic about having to find another job if this one didn't improve. It is, however, keeping me super busy! Not much time to tool around on the internet anymore.

I've also been out being social, spending more time in the kitchen, taking an online course, and trying to squeeze in workouts when I can. It's a rough life. I need to get myself into a routine, stat!

I'm thinking about where I want this blog to go, and if I even want to keep up with it anymore. So far I've decided to continue, but to keep it really casual as far as posting goes.

I'm also sorry I haven't been commenting as much on all your lovely blogs. I promise I'm not ignoring you! I'm still creepin', no worries. ;)

April Goals

At the beginning of April I made a short list on my phone of the things I wanted to complete this month. There were only four things on it:

1. Lose 4lbs
2. Find an apartment
3. Complete the FAFSA
4. Send enrollment fee to SCAD

So far, I've finished two of them. Well, really one since it turned out the program I am enrolling in at SCAD isn't eligible for Federal financial aid.(Side Note: I am enrolling in an online certificate program for Digital Publishing through the Savannah College of Art & Design, in case you are wondering what the heck I'm talking about).

Some of my goals correlate with my 26 Before 27 (to be posted soon!), and some are just things from my to-do list. In any case, I've found this technique useful for keeping myself on track for things I want to accomplish. I think I'm going to keep doing this each month, especially over the summer. I always feel like the summer goes by so quickly and I don't do half the things I planned on doing!

What about you guys? Any techniques you have for keeping yourselves on track?

while I haven't been here

What I've been doing while I haven't been here...

Buying a new car! The lease was up on my current vehicle and it was basically falling apart, so it was time for a change. I am the proud new owner (well, for the next three years, it's a lease) of this 2012 Honda CR-V. This made the last week horribly stressful as my old car failed an inspection, I had to find a new one, and come up with the money to get it. I'm sure I must be developing an ulcer now.

Still apartment hunting. Though now there are officially no more apartments for us to look at in the area we want, so that endeavor is going on hiatus for the time being.

Reading The Phantom Tollbooth. Yes, it's a children's book, but it's a classic and my dad bought it for me and told me to read it so I am. He also was the one who bought me the first Harry Potter book and told me to read it (I didn't even want to, can you BELIEVE it?!). So I trust his judgement on these things (or really the judgement of whatever newspaper he read about said book in).

Swapping! Casey of Girl in the Poodle Shoes and I went to our first Swap yesterday. I was HORRIFICALLY late (damn you, Boston traffic, and damn me for being really crap at predicting when/where there will be traffic), but I had a blast! The swap was kind of meh (we decided they need more guidelines for what people are allowed to bring) but Casey is so fun to hang out with and I did score a pair of Current Elliot jeans so it wasn't a complete wash.

Learning HTML & CSS! I found this really amazing online tutorial program and I am loving it. They have another program for Javascript as well and I plan on tackling that one next.

I can't even believe I am admitting this, but I always get the below song stuck in my head whenever anyone mentions pattern mixing or even says the words "polka dots" or "stripes". They used to show this video on Disney when I was a kid and I've just never forgotten it. PARACHUTE EXPRESS, PEOPLE.

Oh. I also did this:

I'm hoping to get myself back on schedule next week since I have a backlog of outfits to share! This weekend will be spent relaxing and getting myself together so next week I should be fresh as a daisy and ready to blog.

Dear Diary: March 17th, 2012

I think I might start doing some "Dear Diary" type posts to re-cap each week. I'm thinking I'll post them on Saturdays or Sundays and they'll probably be me just keeping track of my life for future trips down memory lane.

Of course, if you're a huge voyeur like I am you might find the small details of my life fascinating. If not, then just skip on through.

Also, as you may have noticed, I'm desperately trying to stick to some kind of editorial calendar for my posting schedule, but it's proving trickier than I thought since I can't seem to find recurring features I love enough to stick to.

One I AM loving is my Friday Favorite. I'm really enjoying finding things I love and then talking about them. I do this to my friends and family constantly anyway, so I might as well share my loves with the whole internet, too!

So, this week was my birthday week. I turned 26 on Tuesday and went out for a delightful dinner & dessert with my love. Which turns out I never pressed "publish" for that post so it just went up now. Whoops.

But the fun started before Tuesday! Sunday I spent the afternoon wandering Newbury Street with the bestie, and it was a perfect day for it! We've been really lucky with the weather lately. We got BerryLine, which only further cemented my love for frozen yogurt. The only problem is I've started craving it, and there are no frozen yogurt places convenient to home!

Monday I helped my hairdresser out by being a hair model for a class they were having at my salon. It was super exciting to get my hair done, see some Bumble & Bumble stylists in action, and admire the looks the other girls at the salon were doing. Definitely a nice treat for a Monday afternoon.

The rest of the week was pretty uneventful...work was stress-free, but boring and I spent my nights eating too many cupcakes and not going to the gym. It was my birthday week, so that makes it okay, somehow. ;) Back at it this week!

Saturday was St. Patrick's Day, and Boyfriend and I actually went out! We went to our favorite old dive bar and had green beer, lunch, and hung out with old friends. I had my first black and tan as well as my first Irish car bomb. It was a crazy afternoon for me. Just because we were out having fun doesn't mean we're suddenly exciting now...we were home and in bed by nine. We're such old people!

Today was spent cleaning out my car (it desperately needed it, it looked like a Dunkin Donuts graveyard in there), running errands, and relaxing. The weather was SUPER nice (75 degrees in March!). It was pretty much a perfect Sunday. I'm feeling pretty sleepy now and slightly worried I might be coming down with something, which would be horrible. We leave for Disney a week from tomorrow!

you say it's your birthday...

So last Tuesday was my birthday! Twenty six. It feels so weird to type that. I am twenty six. 26. Past 25. Which feels old. And yet I feel like I should be OLDER than I am, somehow. Like at 26 my life should be more advanced. I know that's not true, but when you're a little kid you think "Twenty six! I'll have a husband and a house and KIDS by then!" And some people totally do. I do not. And I'm pretty happy that I don't just yet, haha.

ANYWAY, this is what I wore for my birthday, both day and night!

This was what I wore to work yesterday. I wanted to be bright and cheerful, since it was my birthday and all. Bright blue pants? Check. Neon necklace? Check. Sparkle flats? Obviously.

A few quick changes later and I was ready for dinner in Harvard Square with Boyfriend! Swapped out the white for purple added some big earrings and heels and I was done. Boyfriend called me an Easter egg and then I gave him a lesson in brights vs. pastels. Boys.

We had a yummy dinner at Russell House Tavern. I had steak and french fries, which come with garlic mayonnaise for dipping. Sounds gross, but SO GOOD. And SO BAD FOR YOU. Such is life. But hey! It was my birthday.

I had to sneak a picture of Boyfriend while he was paying the bill because he hates having his picture taken. He just looked so damn handsome last night! The boy cleans up.

After dinner we walked around the corner to Pinkberry. I had salted caramel with strawberries and toasted almonds and a waffle cookie. Hello. Sooo good! Then we headed home to watch Sunday's Walking Dead episode. (Walking Dead viewers, without giving spoilers, did you say "FINALLY!" or "Oh noes!" to the end of the episode? Because I am in the "FINALLY!" camp.)

It was a pretty fabulous birthday. The weather was phenomenal yesterday so that was a definite plus. Sadly now my birthday is over and I am running out of excuses for eating so much cake and not working out, so back to real life it is!

Jeans: American Eagle (similar)
Day shirt: Old Navy (similar)
Necklace: Spike the Punch
Flats: Steve Madden
Shades: Ray Ban
Night shirt: J.Crew
Heels: Calvin Klein
Clutch: unknown (Target?)
Earrings: vintage, were great grandmother's I think