one BIG city summer.

i was informed that i kept a few people hanging.

haha.

all worries aside,

i have made it home.

two weeks ago today. haha.

AFTER:

ten incredible weeks

twenty-three hundred miles

ninety pounds of luggage

two delayed flights

six college credits

one great internship

i am happy to say that it feels great to be back.

my experience in new york exceeded my expectations above and beyond.

i really could not have asked for a better situation.

i literally feel like a whole new person.

first things first...

what i learned

trust the process.

if you keep up with my personal blog, you might have read and saw the process it took me to get to where i ended up. there were moments where i had no idea what would happen, or where i would end up this summer. BUT seriously without a doubt, i know that new york was exactly where i needed to be this summer, working for exactly the right design firm i was suppose to be with, living in the exact location with the exact roomate i was suppose to be living with. when you're doing your part, and doing whats right, the big guy will make sure things fall into place. i firmly believe this. GO CONFIDENTLY IN THE DIRECTION OF YOUR GOALS & DREAMS.

people.

the city was QUITE the wake up call for miss smalltown burley girl. new yorkers are polar opposites from what i was use to. people don't go out of their way to say hello, or thank you for visiting their business, or tell you to have a good day. it's one man for himself, worrying about number one! however, you will come across "down to earth" people, who you seriously will come to appreciate more and more. people will treat you exactly as you treat them. i realized just how one's words and actions can affect another's mood, day, or even week. i was a little nervous to come home, because i was afraid that i had adapted to the new yorker's selfish ways, but i hope that i haven't.

don't underestimate yourself.

when i first started out on this adventure, i had no idea what i was capable of doing. i'm my own worst critic. i sold myself short, when in reality i should have been confident in the skills and abilities i have collected throughout my life and schooling. i surprised myself countless times. never in a million years, would i have guessed the number of opportunities i would be given, and have continued to recieve since being back.

comfort zones.

life begins at the end of your comfort zone. since highschool i have come LEAPS & BOUNDS, when i look back at how quiet and shy i use to be. but this summer put a whole new perspective on comfort zones. in fact, im not sure if i even have a comfort zone at the moment. that sounds a little funny, but let me explain. being in a whole new environment, work space/surroundings, atmosphere, you learn all sorts of new things. you're asked to do things you wouldn't normally feel comfortable doing, like catching a taxi, riding the subway, client meetings... the list goes on and on. i use to be terrified of trying new things, including food, and well.. lets just say, now i CANNOT WAIT TO TRY NEW THINGS.

standards & morals.

my whole life i have lived in a place where i have been surrounded by people with similar beliefs, interests, hobbies, morals, ect. this sumer however, was not the case. never, ever, have i EVER, been faced with so many people who are so different from me. thank goodness for the standards and morals i was taught to live by, otherwise, this summer, my life could have ended up in a totally different direction. the gospel has always been a strong part of my life, but this summer made me appreciate those beliefs even more. i learned that doing the right thing, can at times be inconvenient, but people will respect you for standing firm and sticking up for your beliefs. there were so many times it would have been so easy to push my standards aside, but holding true makes you a stronger individual.

work ethic.

i don't know how many times throughout my life, i have wished over and over again, that i wish i didn't have to work. wouldn't it be so easy to just go to school and play? instead of going to school and working? i am so grateful that my parents have both taught me to have a work ethic. as i entered my internship, i was prewarned by previous student interns, that they got so tired of working for free and thats why they didnt enjoy their internship. i decided from the beginning that i wasn't going to look at my situation that way. although i wasn't getting paid with money, i was getting paid with knowledge and experience i wouldn't recieve ANYWHERE else. i made a goal to show up to work everyday with a good attitude. and to keep that good attitude, despite what i was asked to do, or what tasks they asked me to perform. three weeks into my internship, KR sat me down and said how already she was so pleased with my work ethic, that she was now willing to pay for my food and transportation expenses, after seeing how hard of a worker i was. i was extremely flattered. hard work pays off.

honestly.

this post could be miles and miles long.

filled with lessons and lessons i learned and relearned.

i wouldn't trade this summer for a thing.

i am extremely grateful for

the opportunity i had to pursue my education this summer.

for the people i met.

for the things i learned.

for the people i missed.

for the lessons i learned.

for the person i became.

it was a journey.

with my work, explorations,

and a few funny stories.

i traveled with a suitcase full of outrageous blessings.

on a quest for inspiration, knowledge, beauty, and quiet joy.

i became an explorer, a designer, a writer,

an individual.

all in one BIG city summer.

thanks for following me :)

puddles & packages...

so i had totally just walked home from work in the pouring rain.

and when i say pouring, i mean POURING.

falling down like cats and dogs.

and to add to this lovely little picture i am painting you,

while i was waiting on the corner to cross the street a taxi went flying by,

hitting the rather large, nasty puddle of water and who knows what else,

and completely drenched me and 3 others.

i thought this stuff only happened in movies?

anyways,

i get home.

not in the best mood.

and then...

i hear a knock at my door.

low and behold, it was my main man, carlos.

carlos said he had a package for me.

i looked at the box

and boy...

the tears started fallin'

my dear friend alex haynie,

bless her heart.

sent me the nicest package ever.

complete with all my favorites.

diet coke, fruit roll-ups, granola bars, laffy taffy, queso,

finger nail polish, ect.

you name it. it was in there.

totally unexpected. totally made my day.

thank you alexandra lee haynie.

can't wait to reunite in logan when we both get back from our adventures.

love youuuu :)

don't judge.

haha.

please do not judge me

by the grammar or spelling errors

contained throughout my posts.

i just reread over a few of them

and seriously could not stop laughing.

sometimes i just can't get everything from my brain to the blog fast enough.

hence all the mistakes.

akfj;sklahgsakfgsk

xoxo- lish

its gettin hot..

boy, oh boy

did we get a heatwave this week!

yesterday, temperature hit a record high of 104 and with humidity.. that adds up to a whopping 112.

yep, read it and weep.

i did.

people are actually dying from the heat. literally.

last night on the news they sad there has never been so many heat related tragedies..

i literally could feel my sandals melting on the pavement while i was patiently waiting for the light to change.

luckily. my apartment and office are both air conditioned.

praise the heavens.

moving on...

this week i also had my first legit client presentation,

totally nailed it! :)

KR has been having me scheme a few things.

i pulled a few fabrics for her aunts project.

she loved it!

huge relief.

one of our clients wasn't too impressed with one of the schemes for his library.

so i chose a new scheme.

he loved it!

also, a huge relief!

goodness, im actually starting to feel like i might be headed on the track of knowing what i'm doing.

its a good feeling.

however,

i forgot to mention that during my presentation,

i had a total blonde moment.

thank goodness they all laughed, and embraced my hair color.

i said...

"and this will go in Justice's bedroom..."

instead of saying..

"and this will go in Honor's bedroom..."

hahaha. seriously the whole table was laughing.

i immediately knew i had said the wrong name as soon as it shot out of my mouth.

justice. honor. same difference. both have to do with the court system. right?

out of all the problems i could have had hear in new york, i'm glad that the only one i've had to have is having to hold back my laughter. seriously it is SO hard not to laugh at someone on the subway. or bust a gut when you over here a conversation on the street. or nearly fall over when you see a man dressed up like a woman. seriously. if i laughed at these, i'd probably get beat up.

its a real struggle i tell you, not being able to laugh.

i love laughing. haha.

last sunday during relief society, i got a random, BAD case of the giggles.

seriously it was so bad.

it was right before the closing prayer and i just randomly started giggling.

FOR NO REASON AT ALL.

the super bad thing is

that janna started giggling too. and during the prayer, i was doing my best to hold it in, but i could feel my body literally pulsating, and shaking as my arms shrugged back and forth, hitting those sitting next to me. as soon as i heard amen, my laughter escaped.

tomorrow. i'll try to be more reverant.

last night.

was spent in SoHo.

love that place even more, every time i go there.

dinner was great. :)

{embarassing moment.}

totally pulled a marilyn monroe

while walking over the grate in the sidewalk above the subway.

too much surprise,

my skirt blew clear up, practically to my ears.

i couldn't stop laughing.

so embarassed. so embarassed.

today.

we headed up to an area up by our church house and did some exploring.

we found jonathan adler's home decor shop.

which i loved.

seriously. he just became one of my new favorite designers.

his shop was freaking awesome.

and i want my apartment to look just like it. i cannot wait.

we then hit up the guggenheim museum.

today my exploration reconfirmed the fact that

a: i am not a museum fan. never really have been.

and

b: i think it's because i am ADHD and can't stay in one place for long periods of time.

but none the less..

it was a neat place to see.

and i appreciated the architecture.

especially, since my professor made me sketch that building sophomore year.

it's way cool seeing it in real life.

and the art work wasn't too shabby either.

we then hit up a new little pizza shop we found.

divine.

im not kidding guys,

i could eat pizza every meal.

and most days, i do.

and i have a double chin to prove it. :))) (<---- haha thats a smiley face with two chins...)

i've come to a few conclusions..

you know you live in new york when...

... you say "the city" and expect everyone to know that it means manhattan.

... the subway actually begins to make sense.

... the most frequently used part of a vehicle is... THE HORN!

... you go to dinner at 9, when the rest of the world is getting ready for bed.

... you've gotten jaywalking down to an artform.

... $60 worth of groceries fit in one paper bag, (super depressing).

...you're suspicious of strangers who are actually nice to you.

... you run when you see a flashing "do not walk" sign at an intersection.

... there is no north or south, its uptown or downtown.

... someone bumps into you and you check for your wallet.

... rather than waiting safely on the sidewalk to cross the street, you wait inches away from speedy traffic waiting to cut through.

... you walk a mile in 12 minutes and think everything should be open 24/7.

... a yellow light means speed up.

... you cross the street on a greenlight and if you were to get hit, you'd blame it on the driver for not watching.

...you cross the street anywhere, except for the actual corners, and yell at cars for not respecting your right to do so.

... ordering dinner consists of these main food groups: pizza, chinese, italian, mexican or indian.

... you don't even notice sirens.

... more people live in your block, that your entire hometown.

.... you secretly envy your taxi driver's driving skills.

... your doorman is russian, your grocer is korean, your deli man is israeli, your laundry guy is chinese, your favorite diner owner is italian, the watch sellar on the corner is senegalese, your last cabbie driver was pakistani, and your favorite vendor guy is egyptian.

a few others...

...the other night i nearly wet my pants as i watched a homeless man cling on to my roomates leg as we were walking home from dinner. seriously. close call.

... people, men in particular, are a little bit more forward here, i won't miss the whistles or extremely inappropriate comments as you walk by. hahaha, although sometimes extremely funny.

...i watched a grandma almost beat the crap out of a mom and two little kids, because one of the little kids had accidentally bumped into the grandmas leg. in burley, im pretty sure it wouldn't have been quite as dramatic.

...even after 10 weeks, i sometimes still am in shock, when i am greeted by a client or accquaintance, with a kiss instead of a hug or handshake. haha, its what they do here.

... people aren't afraid to show their affection for one another.. anytime, anywhere. they do not care. haha.

this place has opened my eyes.

although sometimes, i wish i could have closed them.

haha.

(if you want to hear stories, i'll tell you. but you might become nauseated or cry. perhaps both.)

haha.

you see things here, you won't see anywhere else.

that's when you just laugh and say to yourself...

"only in new york."

the church is true!

the church IS true!

long time. no post.

ok so apparently

i have been slacking,

i've had like 6 people this week ask me

how i'm doing, because i haven't updated my blog in a few weeks.

i had no idea so many people were following me.

haha.

this is going to be a LONG post,

but now i'll catch you guys up...

work is still going great. we have seriously been so insanely busy, it gets busier and busier each day. i've had to step it up a few notches. but its been great because i have gotten to get my hands into so much more. i think i've been involved of just about every detail and aspect of design. before coming here i had no idea just how much goes into the design process and how important it is to stay on top of things and be organized.

i absolutely love the relationships i have gained from my internship. the ladies i work with are a hoot. i seriously consider them my friends and am sad when i think about leaving them in two weeks. we are constantly giggling or telling each other stories.

we even share brainwaves.

sometimes we show up wearing similar outfits. we crave the same things: ice cream sandwiches, diet coke, and chocolate covered almonds.

i love our office vibe.

last week the street in front of our office was closed to traffic because they were filming a tv series. it was just me and olga in the office for the afternoon so we decided we'd run downstairs and scope out the celebrities. as we were reading through the casting list, we immediately found a name that was familiar to us, and we INSTANTLY got the giggles.

our conversation went a little like this.

o: "he is so 'dum' cute!"

me: "oh my heck i know!"

o: "no seriously, he is so 'dum' cute!"

me: "his eyes.."

o:" OH HIS EYES. SO 'DUM' CUTE!"

we run back up to the office and started googling pictures of him. before we know it, 3 others from the other office had wandered in and were enjoying the eye candy as well. me and olga still laugh about our celebrity crush and sometimes we send each other emails of pictures of him or funny things during the day and patiently wait for each other to open the email and we both just bust up laughing from across the room.

truth is, i love this woman. her accent, her personality, and her laugh. i love hearing her laugh.

the sr. designer, susan, asked me the other day who my favorite designers were...

i start naming a few..

and then i finish off the list with her name.

she went silent.

i look over at her

she was like seriously dying with laughter.

so then i got the giggles.

the office was looking at us like "what the heck are these girls laughing about?"

she could all but try to explain to them what was so funny.

"she.. lisha..she said i was one of her favorite designers...."

as she continued laughing.

all day she just kept saying,

"lisha, i had no idea you were this funny."

it is one of the most satisfying feelings when you are able to make someone laugh.

amongst all the laughter, we still manage to get the job done.

i seriously am so grateful for my office environment, especially hearing the horror stories from the other girls' situations this summer.

this past week i had the pleasure (sarcasm) of cataloging all the bolts of fabric from left over projects. it took me a good 3 days, haha.

i only go to work 8 more days. how crazy is that? i'm looking forward to a client meeting wednesday, and preparing for our install the following wednesday and my farewell luncheon the day i leave. these next two weeks are going to ZIP right past me.

it's a bittersweet feeling.

this past week, kade, my son,

(haha that's what me and alex call him. we constantly refer to kade & gelyn as our children)

came for a visit.

he's been like a brother to me this past year as i have gotten to know him better.

it's been so good to see another familiar face from home. i'm glad he got to visit. kade, janna, and i have had a jam packed week. trying to cram as many events as possible into 5 days, has all but worn me out.

its been funny to see his reaction to things here in new york, it seriously is a whole other world over here.

here's what we did this week:

sprinkles cupcake shop. oh my gosh. SO GOOD.

i had a banana cupcake.

hands down, best cupcake i have EVER HAD.

the highline.

went to the top of the rockefeller center.

SO MANY PRETTY LIGHTS.

if you ever get the chance, GO!

FAO Schwartz. BIGGEST TOY STORE!

we found a random bike taken over by the "knitting society." these people are hilarious. they go around knitting around random things, light poles, benches, and sometimes even people...

grimaldi's pizza & walking the brooklyn bridge. :)

all in all, a great week. hope he's had fun!

the closer i get to going home, the more and more antsy i become.

i can't wait to enjoy the last few weeks of summer in burley.

with family and friends.

haha i seriously am SO giddy.

regan text me this week and said,

"don't be surprised if i attack you when i see you."

totally made my day.

i'll probably be in culture shock for the first little bit.

being able to look completely around me and see

MOUNTAINS AND LAND,

not BUILDINGS AND PEOPLE.

i can't wait for bonfires, sun valley, MY MOM'S COOKING, harman family parties, the cassia county fair, DRIVING, nice people, catching up with friends and family.

things i have missed so so so much.

bahhhhh....

i'm a little excited if you couldn't tell.

this has definitely been such a learning experience for me and i wouldn't trade it for anything.

i feel like a whole new person. i have learned to appreciate so much.

my good friend alex said to me the other day,

"lish, you are so strong now, i'm just glad you're on my side. people better watch out!"

haha it's true, new york has given me a backbone.

let's hope i can find a happy medium..

don't want to scare off too many people. haha.

and am so ready to start school again and enter the next phase..

the week i leave, aspen is coming to spend a few days with me.

i cannot wait to have some time with her, before we both get home, and she gets married.

14 days left in the city.

8 days of work.

but who's counting?

see ya'll soon :)

red. white. & blue.

oh independence day.

4th of july.

my heart was a little torn this year,

not being able to spend it on the good ol' snake river like i have since... well since forever.

but i'd have to say that monday was still a great holiday.

most of the day was spent across the river with the rest of the girls celebrating

the holiday with the jersey boys.

we took a train over to hoboken, new jersey so that when it was firework time, we could watch the firework show with the manhatten city skyline behind over the hudson river.

holy heck. such an AWESOME view.

it was gorgeous.

haven't seen anything quite like it.

if you ever have the chance to spend the 4th in the city. i would highly recommend it.

they sure know what they are doing.

{funny story.}

so lately i have realized some habits i have picked up since being here, some really great ones, and some not so helpful ones, such as being kind of rude, like the rest of this city.

well yesterday we show up a few hours early to save good seats for the firework show

and camped out for a while.

the sun sets...

we all stand up and start watching the show, at first it was great.

we had THE perfect seats. we could see in perfectly. no complains whatsoever.

well as the show went on, more and more people started showing up, standing wherever, regardless if people had been saving places and such.

next thing i know, some dingle brain was standing directly two rows ahead of us. i wouldn't have minded, except for the fact that im a whopping 5 foot and this man was a little taller than i, but accompanying him was his iPad. and he thought he should record the entire thing.

hence, blocking our view of the show.

people start complaining all around me, yet no one would say anything.

so me, being the brave soul that i am, (haha not),

shout,

"we were here before you, would ya please put down your iPad, before i hit ya with it!"

(instantly i think, "uh where the heck did that come from? i would NEVER say that.")

the jersey boys start laughing. the girls start laughing.

the man turns around, looks at me.

meanwhile i'm nearly wetting my pants, laughing, yet scared out of my mind!

so apparently, i'm not as intimidating as i thought i was, because he didn't move his iPad.

and his iPad is in just about every single one of our pictures we took.

haha oh well.

lesson to learn: lish. keep yo mouth shut!

i'm lucky there was a row of boys ahead of me, or maybe i would have been the one that got bopped in the head with the darn iPad.

and if ya'll want to see the hudson fireworks show,

i'm sure the kind iPad guy uploaded it to youtube immediately. :)

SIDENOTE: NOTICE THAT iPad BOY IS IN BASICALLY ALL MY PICTURES. hahhaha.

the train ride back to the city was HILARIOUS. i have literally never laughed so hard in my entire life. the train was so jam packed that literally it felt like sardines. there was no where to hold on to. if the train leaned left, we went with it. if it slammed on its brakes, we moved with it.

all of us girls were just laughing.

too many bodies.

too many smells.

too many stops before we got off.

too many attitudes.

too good not to laugh.

meanwhile back at home, i missed quite the excitement, or so i am told.

i received a picture of my dads face from a family friend.

at first glance, i thought,

"ok weird. why would they just send me a picture of my dad's face?"

then i looked closer.

and read the caption.

buried in my father's face, was what looked like a 3 pronged fishing hook.

i got queezy.

what on earth?

i wont drop names, because it was a complete accident, but someone got a little fishing happy on the dock and managed to catch dad right in the face while he was out in the boat.

not so fun.

my mom had the pleasure of taking him home and cutting it out with the wire cutters.

but hey at least it makes a good story right? ;)

random.

so they say that TEXTING & DRIVING is dangerous.

good grief.

well so is TEXTING & WALKING.

i had a near death experience this week.

so alot of the restaurants or laundry mats

have basements that are accessed outside through a seperate entrance

in a "man hole" type crawlspace. and when its super hot outside, they leave

the panels open.

well leave it to me.

i had just got out of the office and was checking my text messages, off in my own little world,

when it occured to me that perhaps i should look up.

WELL PRAISE THE HEAVENS THAT I DID, because

i was about 3 inches away from this.

i can't even imagine trying to explain how i got myself into that mess.

haha. so take a lesson from me.

don't text and walk.

no bueno.

things are still going great on this end.

taking full advantage of my last weeks here.

and looking forward to friends from home coming to visit over the next couple of weeks.

it will be a blast. i cannot wait.

this summer has been so great.

they say new york is the city of opportunity. and i'd have to agree.

since arriving here, i've been thrown opportunity after opportunity.

causing me to think a little more long term on some decisions

i will have to make in the next little bit.
this summer is exactly what i have needed and so much more.

i really don't know how i lucked out so well.

i have absolutely nothing to complain about.

my living situation is ideal.

the crew at KRI is perfect.

and the experiences i have had, have been even better.

you don't always end up where you think you'll be,

but

you always end up where you're suppose to be.