10 Things I Learned Between College & Now

I should start by saying that I graduated from college young. I was 20, about a month shy of turning 21, and am now about a month past turning 28. So when say between college and now, it’s actually a bit over 7 years, and is the bulk of my 20s. Much of this I also started learning in college, so it could actually stretch back 10 years, from when I graduated high school.

Now firmly ensconced in my “late 20s,” I feel like I have some knowledge that I can cram into your brain. Whether you like it or not!

I love being 28. Just like I loved being 9, 17, 23, 27, and everything in between, and will adore being 35, 43, 57, and so on.

Reality of life: we either age, or we die. Those are literally the ONLY two options. No point in fighting it, might as well enjoy the process.

That being the case, I choose to enjoy and anticipate getting older, and the new experiences each year brings. I choose to hold on to my mostly-unflappable optimism and embrace the new years, instead of kicking my heels or feeling old at being “almost 30.” Feeling old is silly anyway. You’re either old or you’re not, but I’d certainly rather be old and loved and surrounded by life and family than the alternative! Besides, old people can be retired and travel more and say whatever they want with no fear of reprisal. I think being old is going to be AMAZING.

So what have I learned since 20? Has my journey to 28 taught me anything particularly useful or worth sharing? I think so!

10. Hangovers get worse the older you are. Learn to drink in moderation. No more crazy all night keg parties for this girl! I have to be up at a reasonable time tomorrow, and I don’t want to feel like my head has been sawed off and resewn badly. Trust me. Enjoy social drinking, don’t get wasted anymore. It hurts worse as you age! This also feeds into the way that I no longer want to go out and party all the time, like I did in college. I prefer quiet nights at home, or fun outdoor activities. I found out I love that. I also love sleep a lot more than I did at 20!! I can’t be out until 3 am on a Tuesday, I have work the next day and I will be super useless on 3 hours of sleep!

9. Life as an adult is a lot like high school. You still have popular kids and cliques, and inane arguments. But unlike high school, you can choose to remove yourself from most of that. A good way not to piss people off? Don’t discuss religion or politics with strangers or acquaintances!

8. I learned that it is much more important to me to be healthy now than when I was 19. You start to realize that yeah, maybe pizza for dinner every night is not the brightest plan. Maybe you should exercise once in a while, and start to eat a little healthier. It is around this time that if you didn’t before, you start to cook at home more often. You want to make yourself healthy now, so as to not be REALLY unhealthy in another 10 years. I learned that SLEEP becomes a much higher priority now to me than when I was younger! I go to bed earlier than back then, I pay a lot of attention to any sleep issues I have, and I was willing to pay a lot more for a newer nicer bed, than I ever did when I was younger.

7. You have fewer friends. This one is actually a great thing. You still end up with a lot of acquaintances, like that girl from work you always say hi to and chat about your weekend, or that guy from your apartment building you nod at in the hallway and who will sign for a package for you, but your core group of friends tends to dwindle with age, until you’re left with the really important and special ones. The ones who will be there through thick and thin, and will always be on your side when you hate someone or something, even irrationally. I could hate someone my best friend has never met, and she will back me up and complain about what a terrible person they are and offer to beat them up. That’s real friendship right there.

6. Dating changes as we get older. What I wanted out of a relationship when I was 19 or 20 is drastically different from what I need out of one now. Our perspective on dating changes. The type of people we date can change. I am no longer interested in anyone approaching the typical high school “bad boy” of my high school years. I want, need, and deserve (and have!) a guy who knows who he is, who is honest, and who will laugh at life with me. As I got older, dating was a little less about the current moment and a little more about the longer-term potential of the person. Mutual core values became a lot more of a conversation topic, too!

5. Being happy at work and in your career is so much more important than money. For me at least, I learned that as long as I have enough to pay my bills, that money is in no way a deciding factor in a job anymore. Money is nice and all, but not hating my life 40 hours a week is even nicer. Feeling like I make a contribution to a company I care about, now THAT is a great feeling. Figuring out what I want to do in a career was and still is an ongoing process. But learning has been interesting and informative, and invaluable in my overall happiness. I now understand that being happy at work is easily the best thing you can do for overall happiness in life, especially when you consider the sheer amount of time you spend there (rivaled only really by the amount of time you sleep)!

4. Financial responsibility is SO MUCH MORE IMPORTANT than we gave it credit for when we were young and stupid. It is ridiculous that no one in college teaches you how to do your own taxes or the real responsibility of student loans and credit cards. You are so much more aware of your financials as you get older, and of how important it is to be out of debt and saving for your future. I care so much more about being able to afford a decent house someday than buying random toys and clothes that I’ll lose interest in fairly quickly anyway. Having money in savings is a cushion, a nest egg, and a security blanket for me. A quiet night at home not spending money is often more interesting for me than a crazy night out.

3. I learned that family is forever. You actually always sort of realize this growing up, but as you get older, you realize that some friends are toxic, or negative, or will turn away from you. You’ll still have your close friends, but you realize how important it is to maintain a great relationship with your siblings and parents and extended family. These people have known you forever, love you, and will continue to be strong emotional support the rest of your life. You really realize that more in your mid to late 20s, and stop taking them for granted.

2. I learned that we can only be responsible for ourselves. We can’t make people do what we want, we can only ask them to. We can’t change people, and even if we could, why would we? If someone changes for YOU, then it’s not real. People can truly only make changes for themselves, because it is what they want for themselves, in order for it to stick. I learned about accepting people for who they are and loving people because of our differences, not in spite of them.

1. The most important thing I’ve ever learned: You get more confident in yourself with age. You settle into who you really are, and learn more about yourself. You become comfortable with yourself and learn who to surround yourself with. I was incredibly lucky to have a strong female figure in my life: my mom. My mother is 100% sure of who she is and is happy to be that person. My mom does not care what you think of her, and will continue to stand up for what she believes in, regardless of popularity. She was a teacher for forever and day, and in her classroom she had a sign that said “What’s popular is not always right and what’s right is not always popular.” And she truly lives by that statement. My mom is strong, loving, and absolutely true to herself. And because of that example, I grew up being confident in myself and my abilities, strong enough to hold firm in my beliefs, and not caring what strangers think of me. My moms security in herself made me secure in myself. This is the single greatest gift my mother gave me, and one I hope we can all give to our children. Being proud of who she is is the thing I admire most about my mom.

Huh. I guess that means my parents were right, all those times they tried to give me life advice as a kid. Not that I listened then. I had to go and figure it out on my own.

Fresh Princess of Brooklyn

Obviously, this is required to be sung to the tune of the Fresh Prince theme song.

Now, this is a story all about how

My location got flipped, turned upside-down

And I’d like to take 10 minutes,

While I don’t eat pork,

And tell you how this Jew moved from Florida to New York.

Just south of Tampa, born and raised,

In Hebrew School is how I spent every Tuesday.

Sitting there, learning from the Siddur

Wishing I was playing kickball at the school.

When a couple of hours a week were no longer enough

Suddenly it started getting even more tough.

I threw one little tantrum and my mom got mad

She said “Study your Haftorah and get your butt upstairs.”

I sang in the Temple and lead the services,

Finally became Bat Mitzvah’ed, no longer nervous.

If anything, I can say I quit Sunday School that day,

And finally went back to the neighborhood to play.

Weren’t many Jews, maybe 7 or 8,

In my high school, so I decided to move

Looked at Brooklyn

I was finally there

To sit on my throne, another JAP with cab fare.



....Sometimes I think I might have too much time on my hands.

So this is certainly different, right? But I was in the mood for a parody, and I was thinking about how it's so cliche for Jews to move down to Florida from NY, and of course I went the opposite direction.
Yeah? Well who cares what you think? This makes me laugh, and that's good enough for me. :)

Here, enjoy 2 pictures of Will Smith! lol one of my favorite lines, "Damn, you got some big feet."

This is my 'detecting stuff' face.

Apparently At Some Point, I Became An Adult.

10 years ago this month, I graduated high school with my 3 best friends, my family in attendance, and all the freedom that conveys. 

10 years ago this month, I graduated from community college with an Associate's degree in Mass Communication.

7 years ago this month, I graduated from the University of Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Anthropology, with my best friends and family in attendance, with all the confusion that step conveys.

Because my college has you walk in alphabetical order by major, my group was first, and I think I was 4th or 5th across the stage. My family graciously waited about another 10 minutes before looking at the horde of people still waiting to walk across the stage, and stepped up to the railing to look down on me with pride, happiness, and a wave to let me know they were all leaving and would see me at the party at Grandma's house whenever I could get away.

About 15 minutes after that, I snuck out, grabbed my friends, and left for the party. No judgment! There was another 1000 or so people to get through!

It's funny to realize how long it's been since then. In some ways, it feels like a lifetime ago, and in others, like it was just yesterday.

I wouldn't go back, I love my life, and the path it took to get me here. And I remember being that overconfident 20 year old, out to face the world and bring it down around my feet, brick by brick. 

The ambition is still there. I'm still driven and want to be more and do more and get better at work. But that ambition is tempered with maturity, education, experience, and more. 

The years between high school graduation at 17 and around 22-23, I think those were my main growing years. The years in which I figured out who I was, who was important to me, the power and grace of forgiving people who have wronged you, and in learning from my mistakes instead of holding too tightly to regret.

Those were the years in which I made the most mistakes, got my heart broken, and probably broke a heart or 2 as well. The years in which I learned just how lazy I could be, and in contrast, just how hard I would work at something when it mattered.

I learned how to manage money, pay my own bills, study correctly, and do my taxes. I was taught how to write a resume, what it means when friends "just grow apart," and just how little sleep I needed to live.

I also learned that real friendships last, no matter how far away you live from each other, and how sometimes friendships can break up when you're living in the same house. That one taught me that even when it's not your fault, and you both tried, it still leaves you feeling guilty and lonely for awhile. But the other one taught me that distance makes so difference with real friends and those 3 are still here, 14 years and another state later.

Those were the years in which I fully realized how important family is. How a family member might come and rescue you from yourself and take you home with them and let you heal, and not ask too many questions. How your big brother is no longer this all-knowing magical hero, but is a real person with problems, who talks to you about them and values your input. How your mom isn't a know-it-all who just wants to ruin all your fun, but this real, dynamic, flawed person, just like you. And how right they always were about almost everything. How rewarding it is to become an aunt, and have this new life and new generation to love and grow with.

At the end of that time period, around 23 or so, I started to really learn what being an "adult" meant. I'd been on my own for years by then, paying bills and working full time, but it was around that time that I started to think about teenagers as idiots, bedtime as not being 3 am, and "going out" not as house parties, but as dinner and a movie or seeing a band. 

I started to value sleep a LOT more, think things through a little more before I did them, and really think about what I wanted with my career and my future. I even had a retirement account!

4 years ago this month, I moved to NYC at 23. Moving by yourself to a place where you don't know anyone is a huge learning experience! But in between the weird or crappy roommates, the not-so-great first job here, the struggle to meet people and build a new life, I also found new friends, new experiences and adventures, new confidence, a new career, and the love of my life. 

1 year ago this month, I started working at my current job! I started in the staffing industry in a new career path and I LOVE IT!

For some reason, I feel like I'm on the cusp of the rest of my life. Maybe it's my upcoming birthday (which I'm excited about, I love getting older!), or that this month marks so many great and memorable anniversaries for me. Perhaps it is that nice round big-sounding "10 year high school reunion" that I keep getting notifications about! Maybe I'm becoming more adult than ever before. Heck, I've even done my OWN taxes the last few years and am talking about buying property at some point in the future! I know what a mortgage is, and how to get one. 

For whatever reason, I feel like I'm standing just at the edge of the rest of my life, and I can't wait to see what happens next. 

This Is NOT A Parent-Bashing Post. This Is A Learning Opportunity For Us All.

There seem to be a lot of articles online lately about things parents should do, or articles by parents saying what childless heathens should and should not do (and mostly, just to ‘deal with it because you aren’t parents and you don’t understand’). [Note: for some reason, I’ve seen a lot of these articles lately. Not sure why. This is my response to them.]

One thing that bugs me is someone saying something like “you don’t know what tired means until you have a baby!” Or “you don’t understand love until you have kids!”

That’s unfair. I totally understand that you love your whiny kid more than you thought possible, and that you’ve endured some crazy sleepless nights with it, but to cheapen the love and/or tiredness that I’ve experienced isn’t really fair. I’ve had late nights studying or partying, or when my insomnia unfortunately kicks in, and I’ve loved. I love Boyfriend, my family, the friends who have become family, and others.

What you’re basically saying is that the love I feel for my expensive workout clothes or my mom isn’t actually love. It’s simply a cheap facsimile of what I think love MIGHT be, but doesn’t even scratch the surface of REAL LOVE.

No, that isn’t patronizing or condescending at all.

I get what you’re TRYING to say, but what comes out is sanctimonious tripe disguised as advice for childless freaks.

Maybe an alternative could be “You would not believe how tiring it is to have kids.” Or “I didn’t know I could feel this much love before shooting this snotfactory out of me.” Both of these statements are probably true, and don’t throw hate at non-child-having people. See the difference?

Several of the articles I mentioned talk about how rude and unacceptable it is when childless people comment on kids or parenting issues. Though I may not have kids of my own, I’m certainly allowed to have opinions on kids and parents and parenting styles. I mean, I don’t have cancer either, but I stand pretty firm on my opinion that cancer is bad and chemo is probably a good treatment for it.

Maybe you don’t want to hear my opinions on how you raise your kids. Fine by me. I would also like to not hear your opinions on why my life is meaningless without any.

I just don’t understand why all of this even needs to be addressed. If you have kids, I think that’s awesome, and I’m super happy for you and I really love kids, so if they are near me, I’ll play with them and stuff. If I don’t have any, I’m not sure how that in any way affects you. I mean, I can see how it affects ME.

I can sleep in as late as I want on the weekends, and can follow that up with a whole day of watching Modern Family and Bones. I can eat a dinner of chocolate cheerios if I want, and can avoid any and all drop off lanes in front of schools. I can also leave the apartment whenever I want without hiring a babysitter, and watch non-family-friendly TV shows, like Game of Thrones, in the middle of the day. I can wait until I’m ready to have kids, instead of people thinking I should already be ready.

Most importantly, I hate Spongebob and Caillou, so I can completely avoid those!

The reality is, whether we have kids or not, we are all people and everyone should live their life as they see fit, doing what works best for them on the timeline that makes them happy.

My brother got married at 22, my best friend in the whole world at 25. Was I at all ready at 22 (hell no) or 25 (still no, but not as rude about it)? You only get the one life. Do it the way that works best for you.

I guess for me, I just don’t even understand why these articles need to exist. A lot of the ones I’ve been seeing are basically moms talking about how hard being a parent is (agreed!) while also bashing non-parents, basically for existing. Why? Why is this happening?

Also, you should really check out stfuparentsblog.com. It is really, really funny.

In the end, we should all do what we want, when we want. I don’t let some arbitrary timeline rule how I live my life. I’m also not super concerned about how other people choose to live their lives. As long as they aren’t endangering me (or others! Example: I am against drunk driving, even if you are not physically near me. I’m also against teenage driving.), I’m good with their choices.

Be yourself, share your wisdom, feel free to dispense advice (but understand that it may not be taken, and be ok with that!), share your experiences. But don’t try to push your choices on someone else. That’s not fair.

And while I may have finally accepted that LIFE isn’t fair, I still want and expect people to be.

Little Florida Girl Experiences the Never-Ending Winter

I don’t get it. I have no idea what I have done to piss off the weather gods. It was gorgeous out last week and over the weekend, and spring definitely sprang up, all warm and fuzzy and beautiful, like a little baby kitten named Captain Fluffypants from the womb.

It lasted approximately 1.7 blinks, and then on Wednesday I woke up to snow.

WHYYYYYYYYY do the weather gods hate me so? I am just a little Florida girl who moved north to explore the unknown, and now they have heaped snow and ice and cold upon me!!

I am so done with winter. Seriously, so so done. And not only is it freezing outside, but my office is boiling hot inside, with the heat at 1000 degrees.

It’s like NYC wants everyone to be sad and just leave! Although, something that annoys me about NYC is that in order to leave NY to go to NJ (or anywhere south), you have to pay $15 bucks for the bridge, so you are punished when you try to escape, but then when you want to come back, you have to pay another $13 for the SAME bridge to get back in. Punished for leaving, and punished for coming home.

News flash: NYC does not want you.

But I want it, and so does everyone else, and that is why we put up with paying ridiculous bridge tolls, train delays, and crowded sidewalks filled with idiots who stop in the middle of the sidewalk to take pictures and chat while people flow around them like a river around rocks.

Of course, unlike the river, some of those people may say something rude or glare disparagingly at the rocks.

New York has a lot going for it. Amazing shows, museums, shopping, and some great parks. Very cool open markets and block parties, and you can buy pretty much anything here. I feel like if I needed to buy Uranium or a suitcase that has been converted into a refrigerator or a full working Iron Man costume, I could get it here.

What do I do, you may ask, to take advantage of this city full of diversity and culture? Eat Chinese food while watching the Big Bang Theory, thanks for asking.

I do love NY, despite it’s shortcomings. At heart, I am a city girl. I love the distinct and diverse neighborhoods, the brownstones, the fact that I can get any type of food for $10 or less, and that the trains are 24/7.

I do not love NY winters. This winter has been super cold with a ton of snow. Do you know what happens when it snows, and then rains and then snows again, with no warmer days to help melt? The answer is a thick sheet of ice covering everything, and that itself being covered by deceptively non-slide-y looking snow.

Our car was locked into a parking spot for almost 3 weeks, before it all melted enough to get into it and out of the spot.

Boots are helpful, but cannot shield you from all possible slip-sliding around.

Also, it’s totally freezing cold! So you bundle up in your 6 layers of clothes for the walk to the train, only for the train to be too warm, so you slightly unbundle and just suck it up, rebundle to walk to work, and then unbundle completely in your 1000 degree office.

It’s a whole process.

And I’ve actually seen women wearing high heels during these treacherous times. What could possibly possess you to wear high heels in NYC in the middle of an ice or snow day? Is adding a couple inches to your height more important to you than possibly breaking an ankle? I just don’t get it. Aside from the fact that the whole top of your foot is exposed to subzero temperatures!

Chicks be crazy, yo.

This winter has been my very own neverending story. And apparently, it is still not over. The best part about living in the north is the fall and spring. GIVE ME SPRING, WEATHER GODS, OR I SHALL WAGE WAR UPON YOU AND ALL THAT YOU STAND FOR AND LOVE.

My wrath is not a delicate, gentle thing. It is very wrath-like, I assure you. Don’t let my sunny optimism and sometimes-charming innocence fool you! Though it has fooled many others. People think I’m nice. NICE, ME? Pffft. I’m not nice. YOU DON’T KNOW ME. Well, that’s ludicrous, at least some of you know me. Or DO YOU?
*Cue Twilight Zone music now.*

Being Sick As An Adult.

Being sick is the worst.

When you’re a little kid, you get to stay home from school, you get a parent who stays home with you and plays with you, all the books and TV you could want, and you get to stay all cuddled up in your bed with mounds of blankets surrounded by snotrags and wheezing.

So basically, when you’re a little kid, being sick is awesome. Someone is attentive to your every wheeze and need and brings you magical soup whenever you want it.

When you’re an adult, you don’t live with these magical parents who can drop everything to take care of a sicko.

No, when you’re an adult you are on your own. And dude, it SUCKS. There’s already a lot to deal with as an adult: bills, a job, bills, money, and more bills. But on top of having to be in control of your own life and make all your own decisions and also be a decent human being, well, then you get sick.

And no one cares! Your friends and coworkers will feel bad for you. “Oh, that sucks,” they say. And “Aww, feel-better-don’t-breathe-on-me!”

And that’s nice and all, but not particularly helpful. You know what would be helpful? Someone to listen to me whine about feeling yucky and rub my back and bring me some damn abracadabra soup.

This is the closest image I could find to show you how I feel when I'm sick. It does not truly define it.

Alas, you are an adult. And no matter how much you love your significant other, they are not the ideal nurse. Boyfriend and I have had to take care of each other while we’re sick. And we do it with loving care, a lot of Nyquil, and soup. But no matter how much we might love and appreciate each other, even in the midst of achy sickness, there is only one person we want when we’re sick and achy and cranky and bored.

Mom.

Being a mom must be simultaneously the best and worst thing ever. I mean, here you have this awesome kid that you created and brought into the world and loves you. But you also have a whiny cranky snotfactory who calls you to complain about being sick, even though they live 2000 miles away and are 27 years old.

I appreciate you, Mom. I also appreciate the fact that no matter what, you have to listen to me complain and be cranky and whiny on the phone, because you’re my mom and that’s your JOB. It’s right there in the job description.

No matter how old I get, when I’m sick, I want my mom. My mom tells me how to feel better and gives me mostly-helpful suggestions, and for about half a second it’s like she’s right there with me, telling me I’ll be fine and that a nap DOES sound like a really great idea.

Boyfriend and I live pretty close to his parents. Once, I was in Florida visiting family for a week and he had a really bad cold. Did he lay in bed at home and whine and be sick like the rest of us? NO! That lucky guy just went over to his parent’s house and stayed with them for several days. He got the soup and the mom and the covers and the person checking on him and making sure he’s alive and everything! LUCKY JERKFACE.

Even worse is going to work. You know you’re sick, but if you’re like me, then you have the mentality of “Well, I can make it through today, because I might feel even worse tomorrow.” And then I go to work and do my job and even though I’m miserable, I feel like I've earned a Medal of Honor for working that day.

But when OTHER people are sick at work, I’m like “Go home, you’re going to infect us allllllll!!!”

I don’t know what happens between being a sick kid, which I don’t ever remember as being all THAT bad, and being sick as an adult, which basically feels like an earthquake is happening in my head, a hurricane is ripping through my belly, and a tsunami is coming out of my nose. It’s like all my fault lines are moving and acting up and I want to die in a hole.

The point to all of this is that no matter how old I am, no matter how far away I live, no matter what is happening in my life, when I’m sick, I want my mommy and everyone else just isn’t quite the same. Also, in general, I hate being touched when I’m sick.

This is what I want. But from farther away.

So in my world, an ideal situation when I’m sick is this: Being in a cold, dark room, dosed with enough Nyquil to knock out a large rabid lion, with my mom periodically bringing me soup and listening to me whine and carry on about how terrible life is and how my body has betrayed me on a molecular level, with her telling me that I’ll be fine and to go to sleep, all from about a 5-7 foot radius.

Is that too much to ask?!?!

How To: Travel Like A Rock Star

Do you enjoy traveling and seeing the world? Or perhaps travel quite a bit for work? Or maybe you think about traveling sometimes and wonder about possibly trying it out someday. Do you know anyone who has ever gone anywhere?

Then this article is for you.

The first step to traveling like a rock star is to be a bajillionaire.

Step 2: Buy a private plane.

Step 3: Go wherever you want, disregarding airport security measures.

Step 4: Get off plane where you land, and fan yourself from the heat with your benjamins.

For everyone else, let’s do this.

It all starts with what you wear. You start out thinking “Well, I want to look fly when we get there, so I am going to rock my skinny jeans and high heels and put on eyeliner like you’ve never even SEEN BEFORE.”

This is a terrible, terrible, very bad plan. If you are going on a flight that is longer than 1-2 hours in duration, you will very much regret your choices.

Let’s rethink this.

FIrst of all, comfort is key for traveling. Airplanes are like People of Walmart, except all stuck on a flying tin can together with a background ambiance of safety videos and screaming babies.

You will see some very fashionable people also traveling, but you will also be subjected to all the horrors of muumuus, too-tight spandex, sweats in every color, and flip flops as far as the eye can see.

And guess where those fashionable people sit? Up in first class, away from you and the other baby-toting, sweatpants-wearing peons. They get ottomans and real glass from which to drink their tiny bottles of wine.

Unlike us. We’re stuck in the no-legroom, baby-screaming-free-for-all that is Coach. And you can pretty it up all you want with terms like “Economy” and “Business Class,” but you aren’t fooling ANYONE. Coach is where there is always an unfortunate person stuck in the middle seat, the legroom is about 3 inches short of having room for your legs, and the guy in front of you inevitably puts back his seat while you’re in the MIDDLE of eating your individually packaged beef-with-instant-potatoes. DUDE I WAS USING MY TRAY TABLE.

So, back to the clothes. Trust me on this. For international flights, go with sweatpants. If you have a connecting flight and especially if you have more than one connecting flight, you will really, really appreciate slip on shoes or flip flops or ballet flats.

You know what is not fun at all? Walking through 3 airports, including customs and 2 security lines at 2 different airports in high heels.

None of them think you look sexy today.

How would I know, you may ask. WELL LET ME ENLIGHTEN YOU, STRANGER. I just came back from a trip to New Zealand. I live in New York City. It took 3 planes, 2 baggage claims, 2 security lines, and going through customs once EACH WAY to do that trip.

I wore jeans. I wanted to wear my comfy sleeping sweatpants, but Boyfriend though I shouldn’t because it was cold in NYC when we were leaving and I’d be cold and look ridiculous. You know what’s ridiculous? Wearing jeans for 25 hours straight with not a single minute of no-pants time in between.

I had to wear pants for FOREVER. No breaks, no pj shorts, no gym shorts, NOTHING. JUST JEANS. That waistband was not super comfortable 25 hours later.

I also wanted a shower, but that’s another thing.

Go for comfort and convenience and ease over trendy on long flights. Not one single person on the flight gives a single crap about your trendy outfit. You’re the only one who thinks about it at all. And after 25 hours and 2 miles of airports that you’ve walked through and baggage claims and stuff, you will hate those heels, and they will hate you back.

Also, on a trip that long, makeup is a waste. You’ll either rub it off or it will come off when you sleep.

Another important factor to consider when doing some long distance traveling is who you are traveling with.

If it is a significant other, you will want to make 100% sure that you really, really like that person. And that if they are cranky, you can handle it. It is completely impossible not to get a LITTLE cranky at some point during 25 solid hours of traveling. Try not to go with someone you’ll wind up hating.

Now that is some good advice, I should write an advice book! If you’re traveling with family, then do whatever you want. They are family and they’re forced to love you, even when you’re annoying and disgruntled.

Another tip is to have your itinerary on you. You should be able to see when your flight at the next airport is scheduled for, and know your flight numbers. You need some of that info on your customs forms, and if you threw out your boarding passes, you might be a tiny bit screwed. It will also make it easier to check in to the next flights in various airports.

When you are on more than one airline (like United for one flight, but Air NNZ for the next), you have to check in to them separately, checking into the next airline when you get to the next airport.

And then go through security again.

In the end, traveling the world is awesome. Once you’re already there.

Germ-riddled compressed air flying tin cans with wings and tiny bathrooms are not as fun.

The miracle of FLIGHT. Superman knows.

But hey, at least most international flights have those individual personal little TVs with movies and games and TV shows. It could be worse. You could be stuck with just a laptop that runs out of juice in hour 5 of the 14 hour flight, with no where to plug it in.

Someday, teleportation will exist and I will be first in line to beta test that molecular travel thingy. I love exploring new places and seeing different cultures, and how other people live their day to day lives.

I hate sleeping in tiny airplane seats, having to ask someone every time I want a new tiny cup of water, and getting restless. When I got restless on the plane, I would get up and walk to the back and do squats and jumping jacks. It may not have been pretty, but if I had sat in one place that whole time, I might’ve killed Boyfriend out of boredom. And somehow, I don’t think he’d fully appreciate that…

Yeah, yeah, flying is a miracle. I got almost completely halfway around the world in less than a day. And yeah, I got to be in the future, since it is 17 hours ahead there, so when I talked to someone back home, I got to make fun of them for living in the past. But in the end, when you get off the plane in the last airport at your destination, you’re going to hate traveling a little bit.

And then fall back in love with it because you get to see THIS.