So needless to say, I’m totally freaking out.

Not that I necessarily should be. I have a resume that in my opinion, could land me a pretty decent job in no time. I have everything for graduation all set and in order, and I’m trying to keep a happy balance between working hard and playing hard. I really want to enjoy my last few weeks here with my friends who have become such like a family in a nest that is RWU.

But it’s that unknown that petrifies me—that possibility that I might not have a job. That possibility that I might end up back at home after graduation with no job, picking up my American Eagle Outfitters job as a Sales Associate for the summer. I mean, yes, it’s money. But I feel like I have been waiting my whole life preparing myself for a real career in the field I love—now it’s time to get it and I am craving it more than I crave peppermint ice cream.

It’s that unknown that I am applying to jobs in Boston, in Miami, in San Francisco, in Las Vegas, and even in London (don’t tell my mother, she’ll have a panic attack). I have absolutely no idea where I will end up in six months and as exciting that sounds to most, it is equally petrifying for me.

A few months ago, I was given a job voodoo candle by my public relations professor, Dr. Shelton. I’ve never believed in spirits or things like this, but the stories she tells about students finding jobs within 24 hours of lighting these candles are compelling. I stare at this candle sitting on my desk each night, as if it’s haunting me, tempting me, telling me to light it.

I have two job interviews this week and I just might have to take the plunge and light the candle, just as we all must take the plunge into life, into our future, into our dreams and passions. It’s finally time to live out what we have set out to accomplish—this, my friends; this is the best time of our lives.

As much work as it was, our campaign was a complete success. We were able to reach all of our social media goals, secure television and radio coverage, and had at least 50 people in attendance at all of our events! We are working on compiling the book for submission into the Bateman competition, and we will find out if we made top 3 in the country on April 15. April 15 is my own personal doomsday.

Like I have time to think of anything other than this campaign, I am also thinking about job-hunting, which I have officially started my Excel spreadsheet of places I have applied and places I will be applying. As bummed as I am that I’m not going somewhere tropical and relaxing for spring break, I am partially thankful. I have so, so, SO much work to do, and I am hoping I can get myself to be productive over this break to do some catching up and getting ahead.

As I was making my aggressively long to-do list for this week, I then proceeded to do something really, incredibly stupid. I counted how many weeks left until the end of the semester. Normally, this wouldn’t be a bad thing to do; however, as I was got to the last week of classes and flipped the page in my agenda book once more, I saw that word that I am deathly scared of: “Commencement”. Precisely 8 weeks until I will be walking across the stage. 8 weeks until I will be a college graduate; until I am a “real person”; until I am potentially (hopefully) employed; until I have the whole world at my fingertips.

Yes, this is what I have been waiting for basically my entire life. We’ve all been in school since we were basically toddlers, completing grade after grade and working our butts off, with hopes of getting into our dream school and finally receiving that coveted college degree that we all strive for.

But then what?

I’ve never really had to make any truly life-altering decisions, and it scares me to my core to think that decisions I make after college can potentially affect the rest of my life. Or to think that my boyfriend could be my future husband. Or to think that in the next year or two I might be living on my own. Or to think that in the next five years, I could be having a baby.

So in preparation for these scary future life events… I rebelled and dyed my hair purple.

This semester has been so crazy already, not to mention it is my VERY last semester as a college student! By the middle of this year, I will be living on my own (hopefully), with a full-time real job (hopefully). I have been waiting for the year 2013 for as many years as I can remember, and it’s unbelievable to me that it is already here! Less than three months until Commencement, and I got a letter in the mail about RWU’s Grad Fair to pick up my cap and gown… OMG TOO FAST!

I hate to admit it, but I haven’t even started job hunting yet. For one, because I haven’t had a spare moment, but I think the main reason is because as excited as I am for the rest of my life to finally begin, I am scared out of my mind that the decisions I will be making will affect the rest of my life. One thing will lead to the next and could affect the path I take and where I end up ten years from now. Five years from now, two years from now… heck, next year, who knows where we will all be? How exhilarating, but scary at the same time.

Anywho, school has been crazy and (per usual) my schedule is jam packed. I am taking my last class for my public relations major (case studies), my last class for my graphic design minor (corporate identity), and the forever dreaded senior seminar, which thankfully is fairly interesting. I also have an internship as my work study this year at the Media Relations office here on campus (which I am loving)! I also have an internship in Providence twice a week at Miamore Communications, a boutique PR firm specializing in several jewelry clients and non-profit organizations. Even though I have had several internships prior, I am excited to finally be in a PR firm, since that is where I am sure I want to work. This type of experience is exactly what I have been looking for, and I am glad to be getting it before graduation.

If I didn’t need another thing on my plate, I am also participating in the Bateman competition this year, which is a national PRSSA public relations campaign competition. All of the teams are given a topic (this year is bullying), and we are required to plan and execute a month long campaign during February to reach our target public and meet our set objectives. Our campaign, RememberMeRI has been going great, and I am so proud of what we have accomplished between only a five person team. It has been a ton of work, but it is so rewarding to feel like we have really made a difference. I think we have a really good chance this year to be in the top three in the nation, so fingers crossed! But I do have to say, I am really looking forward to this month to end, as I am looking forward to having my social life back!

Oh… and don’t forget I am still in charge of the monthly PRSSA newsletter COMMent, the Opinions and Entertainment Section Manager of The Hawks’ Herald, an active PRSSA member, and have a boyfriend who goes to URI. Time management and organization should be my middle name!

And just think, next time I check back in with you, I’ll be job hunting already… wish me luck!

xoxo
Sofia

My life has been filled with work, class, projects, and meetings non-stop. Per usual, I stretched myself as thin as I can possibly go, and I am participating in probably way too many extra-curriculars, but what can I say? I’m an involvement addict. I am the Opinions and Entertainment Section Manager of The Hawks’ Herald, the Account Executive of the yearly Bateman competition, the Editor-in-Chief of COMMent, taking four classes, blogging, and working floor sets at American Eagle Outfitters. All while trying to have a social life, deal with a mother who wants far too much of my attention and a complicated ex-boyfriend who attends the University of Rhode Island.

Remember when I said that multi-tasking was easy and just takes a greatly organized agenda book and time management skills? Well, I am surely testing myself this semester. Some days I leave my apartment at 8:45 a.m., not to return until almost 1 o’clock in the morning.

How do I manage? Aside from a greatly organized agenda book and time management skills (which are a great help, btw), I make sure everything that I love everything I’m doing. Yes, sometimes classes are difficult, but I love my major, I love my minor, and I am passionate about the things I am learning and confident that these skills will take me places in the future. I mean, what’s the point of doing something if you don’t absolutely love it? Same goes for my extra-curriculars. Sure, I’d love to be able to sleep in weekday mornings and see my roommates more often, but I love what I am spending my time on. I love writing and I love design. These are things that get me through my days.

So what’s been going on with me this semester? Aside from all of the bologna I mentioned above, I spent Columbus Day weekend with my family in Vermont, I went to San Francisco for PRSSA National Conference, and this past weekend, I saw One Direction (<3) at Mohegan Sun with my roommate and went to New York City with my aforementioned complicated ex-boyfriend. It was one of the best weekends I’ve had in a while, and a nice getaway before crunch time- final exams and all of those heavily-weighted assignments that our professors saved until the most stressful point in the semester.

I also confirmed my very last schedule of my college career a couple weeks ago (so scary!) and gave myself Tuesdays and Thursdays off for yes, you guessed it, another internship. For those of you who know me, you know that I have been feeling mega unproductive this semester by not filling up my resume even more with a fifth internship. I was offered one, but due to scheduling conflicts, I had to decline. This broke my heart knowing that I might not graduate with my goal of completing six internships.

However, I may have solved this predicament (and I don’t know why I have never thought of this before…) by having two internships next semester. How will I do this without dying, you ask? One of them will be with Miamore Communications in Providence on Tuesday/Thursday. The other will be on campus in the RWU Marketing & Communications department doing Media Relations. I have not yet been offered this internship yet, but my interview is this week and my fingers are crossed! This internship would be absolutely perfect because it is on campus, relevant to my major, and it would also be my work-study job. What could be better than that?! Not much, my friends.

So keep your fingers crossed for me and I will keep you posted!

Love always,

Sofia x

I have finally returned to Bristol, RI. London will forever be remembered as one of the best experiences of my life, one that I will cherish forever. Being back in Bristol feels like such a routine, thinking about how I was traveling abroad just a few months ago just doesn’t seem real. (I find myself reminiscing and looking through pictures to remind myself!) And as soon as I come out of this dream world… I realize it’s senior year.

Oh, s***.

I have way too much to do.

I basically spent the summer working at American Eagle, took a couple vacations with my family (Florida and Martha’s Vineyard) and celebrated my 21st birthday in August at Mohegan Sun! Being productive was not happening. And neither was an internship. I was offered an internship with Cone Communications, but things fell through when I realized how expensive it would be for me to commute from Brockton to Boston everyday and not get any pay or compensation. I was pretty bummed that I had to decline, but I think it was for the best. I clearly needed the summer to relax before coming back for a crazy, insanely busy senior year.

First, I am taking five classes: Mass Comm Research, Digital Journalism, Photo Journalism, Advanced Design, and a Senior Seminar (three hours long on Tuesday night… UGH). This year I am also Account Executive of the Bateman team (a PR competition where we plan an execute a campaign on a given subject.. this year is on bullying). I am also a member of VOS, PRSSA, and the Hawks’ Herald. I have a new work study position at the study abroad office and I am in the works of possibly getting an internship. When will I be completing hours for this said internship? I haven’t the slightest clue. But we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. I just can’t picture myself taking a semester off from an internship, especially my senior year! I feel like that’s horrible luck and karma would come and find me when I’m job hunting…

That’s another thing, I have to find a REAL JOB. Like a big girl job. Like all of my years of education and thinking about that omnipresent question: What do you want to be when you grow up? It’s here. And I have to start looking in just a few months. This can’t be real… someone pinch me?

Just finally picked up my parking sticker yesterday and I haven’t even gone grocery shopping for my apartment yet… oops. I’m a mess already!

Until next time…

-Sofia xx

Anyway, that’s all over and done with and I got to spend my Easter traveling to Paris! It was my very first holiday away from my family, but I’m happy I had my mind occupied by the big and beautiful Eiffel Tower!

We were only in Paris for three days, and the size of the city and amount of things to do there was daunting. But with my obsessive and strategic planning, I think we saw just about everything! We saw the Louvre Museum, the Notre Dame, Sacre Coeur, Moulin Rouge, the famous lock bridge, and of course, the Eiffel Tower.

The Louvre

The Eiffel Tower

The famous lock bridge

Moulin Rouge

Sacre Coeur

Notre Dame Cathedral

We even had time for a night cruise, which was only 12 Euros and we got a coupon from one of those people that harass you on the street—they aren’t all bad! And it was totally worth it… seeing the Eiffel Tower sparkle at night brought tears to my eyes (and not just because it was windy).

Paris at night--the Eiffel Tower from our cruise

On our last day, we took a day trip to Versailles to see the palace, which was gorgeous (and free because we are students!). After touring the magnificent palace, we wandered around the gardens in the back and then rented a canoe on the lake! It was the perfect day.

Versailles from my canoe

Versailles Palace

The gardens at Versailles

Then I met my friend Jessi, who is studying abroad in Paris (jealous!) and from there we headed to Barcelona! Barcelona was much bigger than I expected and there was much more to see, which was good since we were there for four days.  It had such a cool, relaxed vibe there, and seeing palm trees while sitting by the pier was the best feeling!

The pier

The architecture there was out of this world, most of it designed by Antoni Gaudi, who I have decided is a total genius. My favorite area where his architecture is showcased is Park Guell. Not only were the buildings beautiful, but also the sights were out of this world! It was definitely worth the hike.

Park Guell

We also hiked up Montjuic and got to see Castell de Montjuic and rode my very first monorail down the mountain afterwards. We went back to relax by the pier and ran into music playing and people salsa dancing in the square! It was such a fun atmosphere… I love running into things that are unplanned!

As you can imagine, the nightlife and the food is amazing in Barcelona as well, clubs on the beach, sangria, paella, tapas… it’s making me hungry reminiscing!

The club on the beach

The food!

We then flew into Pisa to see the Leaning Tower of Pisa! It was such a sight to see in real life and it was so funny watching everyone pose with it. I tried myself…

Holding up the Leaning Tower

Later that day we took the train to Florence, where I visited my friends studying abroad there. Florence is so cute and exactly what I would expect from a small Italian city… I loved it! The food is amazing and I love how easily accessible all the sights are. We saw Ponte Vecchio, the Duomo, Palazzo Pitti, and Piazza Michelangelo, which all have spectacular views of the city.

Sweeping view of Florence

Naturally, we had to visit the pizza place where the Jersey Shore worked, and it was actually some of the best pizza I had in Italy! We even got a picture with the boss…

Pizza Boss...Jersey Shore what?

As expected, the gelato was to die for and I am positive I would be twice the size if I studied there myself!

On the last day, we went on a wine tour in Chianti where we saw the Tuscan countryside. Even though it rained the entire day, the views were brilliant and I learned so much about wine and olive oil!

Wine Tour...for research...

We then took another train down to Rome, which was the last leg of my trip. I never thought I would say it, but by this point, I was exhausted and couldn’t wait to be in my own bed in London! Nevertheless, we still had three days, and I wanted to see as much of Rome as we could.

We saw the Trevi Fountain, the Spanish Steps, the Colosseum, and the Roman Forum all in one day!

Trevi Fountain

The Colosseum

The Spanish Steps

The Forum

We then devoted an entire day to St. Peter’s Basilica and the Vatican Museum.

St. Peter's Basilica

When I came to Rome years ago in the 8^th grade, I had been unable to go inside the Vatican because of the election of the pope, so I was really excited to get to see it this time. I also got to see the Sistine Chapel, which is too beautiful to describe properly in words! Wish they let us take pictures…

I’m so thankful I was able to travel while studying abroad, and I have definitely made a dent in my bucket list of places to travel!

And as soon as I arrived back in London it hit me… only one week left!!! Where did time go!?

Until next time (where you will read about my mental breakdown and struggles packing, I’m sure…)

Cheers!

xx

Over the weekend, I took a trip to Amsterdam with my school. It was the first time I traveled outside of the country since I got here and I had a blast! We met at the bar on campus on Thursday night and traveled by bus and ferry to get to Amsterdam by Friday morning. I did not get much sleep because one girl was SO LOUD on the bus, so no one could sleep. We all wanted her head.

We finally arrived, exhausted, but I was not about to waste a minute in Amsterdam sleeping! My friends and I dropped our luggage at The World’s Worst Hostel (literally, they have a gold metal AND a plaque), and began exploring the city! There are rivers everywhere and it’s actually set up in a giant circle, patterned with roads and rivers. The first thing I noticed (after it’s beauty) was the insane amount of bikes. EVERYONE seems to ride bikes there, and they rule the streets over cars, pedestrians, even the tram. The bikes have their very own lane and stop lights!

Bikes Everywhere!

Amsterdam at night

The second thing you will notice about Amsterdam is the amount of coffee shops there are. No, I don’t mean cafes to grab some coffee and a croissant. Coffee shops in Amsterdam are very different… but we won’t get into that.

On the first day, we went to the Rijksmuseum, which was mostly under construction, so it was kind of a waste of money. I did get to see some original Rembrandt paintings, though! Aside from that, not so worth the €14 I paid for a ticket. Really beautiful on the outside though.

Rijksmuseum

We then wandered in and out of some touristy shops to collect some items of memorabilia (I got a shot class and a postcard for my wall).

While walking though the city, we found some truly amazing street performers and street art, so I had to take some photographs. I wanted to make this guy’s dream come true and put is art on a blog, so here it is!

street art

Street art on a blog, as promised!

And it wouldn’t be Amsterdam without wooden shoes, right?

Me in a wooden shoe

wooden shoes sold everywhere

They’re everywhere! Street fries are also really popular, but I couldn’t muster up the confidence to have them with traditional ketchup and mayonnaise… but they were delicious all the same.

We then ventured our way over to the Red Light District… I don’t think I have many words for that. We were in and out of there in about 60 seconds!

For something a little more serious and less disgusting, we went to see the Anne Frank House, which was probably one of the most amazing things I’ve ever seen. Unfortunately, I couldn’t take any pictures there (except one at the entrance), but I highly recommend it for anyone who travels to Amsterdam. It was a little eerie being in the actual house she lived in during the Holocaust, but breathtaking and so emotional. The things they have preserved here are quite a sight to see, right down to her bedroom wallpaper and magazine clippings she hung up herself. Visitors can walk all throughout the house (even behind the bookcase to the annex!) all the way up to the attic, reading plaques and watching video clips along the way. Once we made our way back to the beginning of the house, we got to watch an interview with Otto Frank about the discovery and publication of his daughter’s diary. We even got to see the actual diary in the red plaid notebook she filled with her feelings during this excruciating time for her and her family.

Amazing, amazing, amazing. Worth the trip to Amsterdam itself.

That evening, we went to a club with my school and had a blast! Quite difficult to wake up on Saturday, but refused to waste time when we only had a weekend!

On Saturday, we started the day off right and visited the Heineken Experience, and let me tell you, it was an experience. I wasn’t expecting it to be so interactive and interesting, and I don’t even like beer! I decided to like beer that day though, as our entrance fee came with a wristband that allowed us a choice of two complementary beers, or a lesson on how to draft a perfect Heineken and one complementary beer. I choose the latter, and drafted my first beer perfectly on the first try! I got a certificate and my very own Heineken bottle with my name on it, so legit!

me, my perfect beer and Storm

Heineken experience

Malt barley at the Heineken Experience

After staying there for… almost the entire day… we found a playground and had a photo shoot on tire swings! I then got my very first falafel wrap; it was amazing and I am now addicted to anything with falafel in it.

To be proper tourists, of course we had to stop by the I Amsterdam sign and take some photographs, posing on the letters. It was much bigger than I expected and so much fun to climb and pose on the letters. I even ran into my friend who is studying abroad in Florence! She was visiting in Amsterdam as well and we got a picture in front of the sign together… love you Alice! Xo

Alice and me

Tire Swing!

Sunday morning, we had to head home in the morning, but all in all, it was an incredible weekend and I would not have wanted to experience Amsterdam in any other way. We stopped at a rest area in Brussels and picked up some Belgian chocolates (YUM) and headed home!

This weekend is St. Patrick’s Day weekend… so there will definitely be some stories to blog about.
Until then, cheers!

xx

Basically the event runs over a course of ten days (5 days for womenswear, 1 day for menswear, and 4 days to open the stands to the general public). Every day, the designers have a stand where representatives from the company will show clothing from the current collection to potential buyers, bloggers, and magazine editors (a.k.a. we kiss their butts). Catwalks, exhibitions and private events also show throughout the day where visitors can gain entrance if they have a certain pass or ticket. I had an exhibitors pass so I got to wander around pretty much everywhere and sneak my way into a catwalk show one morning… amaze!

Exhibition Room

As far as the people, everyone walked around like they were famous, and during London Fashion Week, they most likely were famous. But because I don’t really know many stylists or editors popular in the UK, I could have easily been drinking champagne (yes, there was champagne… lots of champagne) and rubbing elbows with the best of them. My PR girl self was eager to network and find out everyone’s business, but I was there to work, and didn’t have much time for mingling.

Henrietta Ludgate Stand

Most of my time was spent printing up extra copies of biographies and press releases, delivering them to press rooms around the Somerset House, and e-mailing everyone that stopped by our stand to thank them and send out a digital lookbook. The best part of my job was getting to walk around in Henrietta’s clothing. Not just for fun, but to get photographed and end up on fashion blogs and style websites. This is not only amazing for me, but promotion for Henrietta Ludgate as a brand.

Marjorie & me in Henrietta Ludgate

Henrietta's girls in front of LFW sign

Nikara in Henrietta Ludgate

The weekend was a little less exciting because the crowd was less fabulous and famous, just a bunch of fashion wannabes essentially who couldn’t get an invite to the real fashion week! But, in their defense there were loads of designer clothes at amazing discount prices. I myself got a hot pink sheer maxi skirt and a blue sheer blouse with a gold sequin collar by Never Fully Dressed for only £50!

Overall, it was a great experience and I wouldn’t trade it for anything. I learned so much about the industry and myself and I know for sure that I’m perusing the right career path. Because the past six weeks of my internship have been preparations for London Fashion Week, I really have no idea what I will be doing now, but I am eager to find out! I do know one thing is for sure though; I will be working a lot less. It’s time for me to focus on sightseeing (and some schoolwork…)! We will be making t-shirts that say: “I survived London Fashion Week” – hilarious, I can’t wait to rock it in the states!

On my day off, I really would have just loved to sleep in, but I just hate to see myself waste a day in a place like London, with so many things to do and see! I finally got the chance to see Big Ben, Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey, and Buckingham Palace. They’re all in walking distance from one another and the London Eye is right over the River Thames and OH MY GOODNESS, it was beyond beautiful! Words just can’t describe, I walked up the steps from the Westminster Tube and BAM! Big Ben is right there, in your face, gigantic and stunning. I don’t think I ever took so many pictures in one place (and that’s a lot of pictures for me)! I already can’t wait to go back and visit again!

Westminster Abbey

Big Ben & London Eye

Houses of Parliament

Buckingham Palace

This weekend I am going to Amsterdam and I am so excited!!! Photos to come next week!

Cheers!

xx

1. Toilet, Loo, WC = bathroom
2. Fit = good looking
3. Cheers = thank you
4. Skanky = dirty/ratty/old
5. Tuff = conceited man
6. Tart = promiscuous girl
7. Aubergine = eggplant
8. Biscuit = cookie
9. Scone = biscuit
10. Crisps = chips
11. Rocket = arugula
12. Mind = watch out
13. Lift = elevator
14. Trousers = pants
15. Knickers = underwear
16. Jumper = sweater
17. Trainers = sneakers
18. University/Uni = college
19. Mucking around = goofing off
20. Holiday = vacation
21. Boot = trunk
22. Car park = parking lot
23. Motorway = highway
24. Petrol = gas
25. First Floor = Second Floor (this is VERY confusing)
26. Bill = Check
27. Off license = liquor store
28. Bangers = sausages
29. Chips = fries
30. Take away = take out
31. Toastie = grilled sandwich
32. Bin = trash can
33. Way Out = exit
34. Cooker = oven
35. Hob = stovetop
36. Mobile Phone = cell phone
37. Queue = line/wait
38. Knackered = exhausted
39. Fag = cigarette
40. Porridge = oatmeal
41. Tutor = professor
42. Cab = taxi
43. Are you all right? = Can I help you/How are you?
44. Wanker = drunk
45. Till = register/checkout
46. Snogging = making out
47. Fancy = want
48. Loads = tons/a lot
49. Dodgy =  sketchy
50. Zed = Z

Hoped you all celebrated Fat Tuesday yesterday– I sure did! It was National Pancake Day here and I love me some pancakes. There were pancakes races all over the city yesterday, my friends and I decided to go to the one at Borough Market, right near the Southwark Cathedral and the Thames River.

Gorgeous! So anyway, because it was a Tuesday, I may or may not have skipped my morning class to attend this crazy event, but I just felt like I couldn’t miss it (what has my life become??)! Before the race began, we had some interesting entertainment…

And then the race began!

Needless to say, it was hysterical. What a day!

Oh, and here’s my “pancake”… I guess they’re crepes here, another American thing I miss dearly! It was delicious anyways, Spinach & Ricotta!

Until next time..

xx