I'm going to start this off by stating that I'm very aware of the fact that being in a situation that allows me to be safely sheltering-in-place with time to pick up "hobbies" in the first place is a HUGE privilege. So for all of you reading this from the comfort of your own home, please, do your part and help keep others safe by trying out some new hobbies. From home. 

If you've been sitting on your couch the past week, chip dust trailing down your pjs, scrolling through all the Fitspiration posts that have popped up recently, you've probably felt pretty bad about yourself. Same. But, this movie isn't about guilt-tripping you into working out. It's less about "getting fit" and more a realistic look at the ups and downs you can experience when taking on a huge lifestyle change.

Why it rocks: It's about FRIENDSHIP and SELF LOVE. Something we can all rely on these days. It also reminds you of the good old days when New Yorkers were free to frolic around, and the amazing experience that is making unlikely friends in the city.

If you're sick of hearing men yell about politics...

Red - PBS Great Performances (2019)
C'mon down and listen to a couple of men yell about ART! Something we could all be supporting more right about now. Also it's perfect if you've been bummed that your season tickets to the theater will have to wait until next year. Or maybe the virtual tour of the Louvre isn't cutting it for you. It's truly a beautiful piece of theater captured wonderfully by the Great Performances series on PBS, which is now free and available for public streaming on their website or app.

Why it rocks: It's only an hour and a half long and you can sneak your own cocktail into your living room. Maybe even a bag of chips! Plus the only person texting during the performance might be your couch-mate, and you can pause to give them a little speech on theater etiquette.

If you were pissed Disney originally asked you to rent this...

Onward (2019)
This heartwarming adventure fantasy movie was only in theaters a short while before everything went down. At first, Disney had it available for rent, but then made the wonderful choice to let it stream for "free" through Disney+. Hey, it's Pixar's latest film, it's a lot of fun, and it'll make you appreciate your siblings a lot more, even if you've been holding a grudge over who ate the last chicken nugget.
Why it rocks: Chris Pratt and Tom Holland get to be brothers. Unicorns. Magic. Oooh.

If you're missing context for viral tweets over subtitles...

Parasite (2019)
Yes. It is in Korean. It's a Korean film. This isn't a Marvel movie so your brain won't explode from having to read some subtitles (and if you know Korean, even better)! But truly, if you do not know what movie you want to watch, watch this. It's funny, it's freaky, it's dramatic, and unless you've seen it before, no, you will not have seen it coming.
Why it rocks: C'mon. Just do it.

If you know Genovia would have had a kick *ss pandemic plan...

Princess Diaries (2001)
Maybe your foreign-monarch-grandmother won't be making any trips to tell you you're a long lost princess anytime soon, but we can dream. Maybe temporarily moving back home has also inspired you to channel your child/tween/teen self. Lip Smackers, butterfly clips, and all. Also, newsflash, women make excellent leaders.

Why it rocks: Julie Andrews. Early 2000s nostalgia. Brush up on the Genovia national anthem which I know you always get mixed up with "O Canada".

If you've been playing Animal Crossing for two weeks straight...

Paddington (2014)
Look we even have movies with talking animals! And it's a family movie. Based off the children's books, an adorable little bear is taken in by everyone's favorite British dad, Hugh Bonneville, and Sally Hawkins (yes, the fish-loving lady who ripped your heart out with that monologue in ASL in The Shape of Water).

Why it rocks: It transports you to a world filled with bright colors and reminds you to be kind to strangers. What else do you need right now?

If you think your hometown is boring...

Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019)
Imagine living on this island without a pandemic happening. Also if you've been restless since hearing the sequel to Call Me By Your Name is in the works, this should fill the little void in your soul. It's a picturesque love story in French (yes, more subtitles, you'll learn to like it) that got snubbed this award season.
Why it rocks: Women. Let's support women in the film industry. This movie was written, directed, produced by and starred women. The only guy in this movie like silently lifted a box or something.

If you like to remind yourself things could be worse...

Train to Busan (2016)
This is for all you "worst-case scenario" people out there such as myself. You don't want any fuzzy bears, love stories, or inspiring messages right now. You want action and blood and zombies, but not funny ones played by Bill Murray. Let's just say things go from a 0 to a 10 really quickly.
Why it rocks: Things really could be worse. And man no major spoilers, but Korean zombies move FAST.

You there. Sitting on your standard-issue college housing sofa, softly cradling a cup of instant ramen in your hand, yeah you. I get it. It's only been one week back to college and it's already felt like two months, money's tight and you're a little (that's a real understatement) stressed. You already spent all your hard-earned summer cash on overpriced, Instagrammable smoothie bowls and you're finally realizing that you truly cannot afford another "Treat Yo Self" moment.

Trust me, friends, as a recent college graduate I've been to that rodeo. But, before I give you some money-saving tips and tricks (which we all know we could use from time to time) let's start off with all coming to the agreement that college is EXPENSIVE AS HECK. Between tuition, housing, supplies, transportation, and basic living expenses, there really may not be much of anything left over afterward. But, that does not mean there aren't ways around that. Not everything fun and fabulous in life has to cost you a ton or even any money. With a little time, creativity, and curiosity, you'll be living broke and fabulous in no time.

So finish up that Styrofoam cup and let's get cracking! Here are my nine tips to saving a little $$$ while in college.

The Dining Hall: 

 Most campuses have at least one dining option where it's all-you-can-eat style. While I'm not suggesting you try and make the most of your meal plan by eating as much as you possibly can, I do suggest getting creative with what is available to you. See a few bowls of fruit? Grab a couple bananas to go, either for snacking or making smoothies if you have a blender. Snag a few cookies from the dessert table to share with your floormates during your next movie night. Depending on what your dining hall offers, you have a ton of options to grab some extra snacks or ingredients for later.

Ask about student discounts: 

Many stores and food establishments located around or nearby college campuses offer student or college discounts with proof of a college ID. Some places have signs advertising the discount in their window, or by the cash register, but a lot of times you'll have to know by word of mouth. While the discount won't be steep, 10-15% here and there can really add up, especially if you're grabbing coffee or breakfast from your favorite cafe every day. You might as well ask, the worst they can say is no!

Split with a friend:

This seems like a no brainer, but you can easily cut costs by splitting things with a friend or two. Uber ride home? Find a couple pals before heading home. Not that hungry? Share an entree and an appetizer with a friend. At the movies? Both go in on a large popcorn versus two smalls. Even non-food items like textbooks can be shared two ways (as long as you don't mind handing off a book between classes.)

Campus events: 

Keep updated about upcoming campus activities and events. Most likely you're already paying an "activity fee" to your college that funds these types of events, so you might as well enjoy them! Contrary to popular belief, they're not all lame. Most likely they're planned by other student groups on campus and they cater to the masses. Therefore, there's free swag and food WAITING to be taken.

Ask around / Buy & sell groups:

Before you jump the gun and pop over to Amazon to buy something you want or need, be it clothing, textbooks, appliances, etc. see if your school has any Facebook groups or similar sites/pages for buying and selling items on campus. Someone you know just might be getting rid of that blue Keurig you've been eyeing since last semester. Or you can even make some side cash getting rid of that sweater you definitely keep "meaning to wear."

Host your own get-togethers: 

Going to your favorite sushi place or happy hour every other day is going to make a major dent in your wallet. Take turns with your friends or floormates hosting a night in. You could bake cookies and sip wine (if you're of age) or hold a movie night and someone else brings the popcorn. Invite others to haul over a blanket and pillow or two, and encourage everyone to bring a snack or drink to share. This can be a money-saving alternative to always going out for fun.

Sign up for rewards: 

Coupons aren't just for old ladies anymore. Look up the websites of your favorite stores and restaurants, even on a local level, sometimes they have the best deals. At some places, if you sign up for their email list or download their app you can get exclusive coupons, notifications of promotions, or even a sweet birthday coupon. Who knows? That next burrito could be on them!

The Library: 

Free* access to books, movies and more? Who knew! Campus libraries these days are becoming much more than stacks of books from the 80s. Depending on your college, your library may give you access to awesome resources such as computers with the latest photo and movie editing software, printers, magazines, and even textbooks (yes those things you pay even more money for!) Some campus libraries also give you access to other exclusive content websites that have everything from digital resources to online libraries of hard to find movies.
*Free after a solid payment of many dollars in tuition

Join clubs: 

Find something you are passionate or curious about and see if there's a club for that. Not only will you make incredible friends and learn new things, but you may even be able to participate in some amazing events for free. Clubs on campus usually get some sort of funding through the college and in turn, your club may just be able to score you some free tickets to your favorite author speaking or some great theatre tickets.

I hope these few tips inspire you to be creative and thoughtful about your money and resources. There are so many opportunities to save some cash here and there if you're willing to look for them. Happy saving!



(Photo by The Creative Exchange )

Upon reading that the renowned Marie Kondo was dropping a new Netflix series earlier this year, I got way too excited. I'd recently been wallowing in my worry over having to move all of my belongings at the end of the school year and this seemed like the perfect solution. With my eyes practically suctioned to the screen I figured, "okay...my life is a mess...I watch this TV show... no more mess...poof goes my stress!"

Flash forward four episodes and about four hours later, the contents of my drawers spilling onto and recarpeting my dorm floor. I was in the thick of it, but it was exhilarating. I was looking at streams of things I really just didn't want or know I had in my life anymore.

This was not the first time I'd attempted to go through my belongings. In fact, I'd tried at least a few times this past school year, increasingly aware that the more stuff I accumulated, the more I'd have to deal with when I graduated. Each time I'd pull a few clothing pieces to sell or donate and then just reorganize everything (or more realistically shove everything back in drawers.)

 For some reason, it's easy to browse through your clothes and junk drawers and say "eh I'll use it sometime, maybe I'll need it soon", then proceed to exile it back into the cavernous depths of whatever closet you were excavating. But, this time I followed what Marie said, and laid everything out where I could see it. Then I started playing Where's Waldo for things that "sparked joy" and started being able to differentiate what I actually enjoyed in my life versus what I'd been holding on to for those "what if?" days.

In a pile were clothes I never wore, never took the tag off of, wore for the sake of having it in the first place, and so on. But, instead of reluctantly fishing them back out, I now made my peace, thanked the object, and accepted the fact that my life would be better, and lighter if I didn't have to carry it around till the next purge.

After cleansing, the next step was folding. The glorious act of making your dresser look like a filing cabinet. I'd already been doing this from an earlier pre-quarter life crisis, but this just made me do a better job of it this time around.
Now some of you may immediately be thinking of all the crazy Marie Kondo memes that have been floating around on the interweb for some time. In a way, the internet has taken Marie and turned her into the new Ina Garten. To clarify, she's not out to brainwash you into throwing away your most precious belongings just to have "less things". Contrary to popular belief, if you have 60 books on a shelf, but cherish each and every one, that's something worth keeping if it makes you happy. But, if you just have 60 books for the sake of having 60 books, it may be worth considering scaling down.










So where am I now? - In a happier space with less things. 

Do I have like only ten items in my life? No... but my drawers are less likely to explode at any moment and I can really see what I have. I truly believe that at the base of Marie Kondo's method is the idea of appreciating what you have. In today's society many of us seek happiness and instant gratification with material items, but by taking the time to appreciate what you do have, it fosters an overall feeling of contentment.

So if you're feeling like you're drowning in your own nest of meaningless items, I highly suggest giving Marie a chance.


(Image via Netflix)

It also came with this adorable little bag!!! Which appeared to be much better made than the ones LaDuca  sell at their store (they have a tendency to fray easily).

Excuse my ridiculously beat up LaDucas on the left (the shoe repair place used the wrong color elastic), American Movement on the right

LaDuca (Left, Alexis style - 2.5" heel), American Movement (Right, Julie style, 3" heel) You can really see the difference in space between the two cups on each shoe in this picture. See how much wider the gap is on the American Movement shoe?