Have you had a money meltdown recently?

I live in an insanely expensive city and work in an industry that pays peanuts, so there hasn't been a time in the last five years that I haven't stressed about money. Since I lost my job, living paycheck to paycheck has taken on a new meaning. Freelancing full-time has the potential to be very lucrative, but I'm not at a point yet where I have consistent cash flow rolling in. 

In addition to mani/pedis, I've had to cut back on so many things like shopping, meeting friends for dinner and going to the movies (my most favorite thing in the entire world). I still get my daily grande skim latte from Starbucks, but since my checking account has reached an all-time low, I will most likely have to ditch that too. I'm seriously getting sad just thinking about it. 

I had a ridiculously fun weekend (pics from the bachelorette party will be up tomorrow!), minus my meltdown Saturday afternoon. My friends wanted to go shopping, so we hit up a bunch of boutiques in Soho. I knew it would be tough sitting on the sidelines while everyone else made their purchases, but I handled it just fine...UNTIL I came across a super-cute shorts romper on sale at Nanette Lepore. I have never wanted something that badly in a really long time. I considered charging it on my credit card, but I knew that wasn't really an option. When I walked out of the store empty-handed my eyes started welling up with tears. "Are you crying?" Liza asked. We let the group walk ahead and I totally lost it. "I wear the same shit every week. I've only bought two new cheap pieces this whole summer. I haven't had a manicure in over 70 days. I can hardly afford groceries. I can't doooo this anymore," I said in between sobs. 

I know you're probably thinking, "Oh, poor girl, can't go shopping. Boo woo." I don't throw pity parties for myself often; I know things could be so much worse. However, it is incredibly hard living in Manhattan and not being able to buy things and keep up with everyone else. 

I couldn't pull it together, so I left the group without saying bye and headed to Luke's apartment to relax for a bit. I had absolutely nothing to wear that night for the bachelorette party, so I decided to stop by American Apparel to find a basic dress that I could spice up with a belt or piece of jewelry I already had. I grabbed a light blue button down shirt dress (even though I knew it wasn't right for the occasion), but right when I got to the dressing rooms, I turned around and put the dress back on the rack. I knew the purchase would leave me feeling unsatisfied and even more depressed. 

I passed a gelato store on my way back and got a small cup of peanut butter. 

I didn't feel guilty about the indulgence because the serving was pretty small. Emotional eating is something I need to work on, but it only set me back $4.68 and it actually did lift my spirits a bit. I figured that was better than having shopper's remorse. 

Am I alone here? Has anyone else had a money meltdown recently? Do share!

Bachelorette Party Recap

I had an absolute blast this weekend. Liza and I planned the festivities and we couldn't have been happier with how everything turned out. Friday for dinner we went to Bread in Soho—it was delish! We had calamari, arugula salad, bruschetta and mozzarella for starters. For my main dish, I had chicken milanese with salad, and dessert was chocolate cake, cheesecake and ricotta cheese with fruit—so good! I wish I had taken pics, darn. I went a little overboard on the calamari, but no serious damage was done. After dinner we headed to a bar called Vig for "a couple drinks."

But of course we didn't leave until 3:30am! You know when you're out and EVERY song the DJ plays makes you so excited you just can't stand it? It was one of those nights. 

Here I am with the bachelorette and her twin sis, Molly. We've been best friends for 15 years, but we actually "met" when we were babies. We were in the Twins and Multiples Club together in Lexington, KY where I'm from (I'm a triplet, btw!). Cute, right? They are the only two people I know that may possibly be better dancers than I am. ;) 

In case you're wondering, I did NOT eat anything late-night. Victory! And the next day at brunch, I ordered a yummy, but healthy meal of scrambled egg whites, salad and chicken apple sausage. I passed on the mimosas and got a skim latte and avoided the bread basket. It felt nice to be in control, even after a late night of drinking. The especially nice thing was that I didn't feel deprived or wish I had gotten the eggs benedict or biscuits and gravy. 

After an afternoon of shopping, we came over to my apartment for Becca's "naughty" lingerie shower. (Ryan, I think you'll be pleased!). Then we headed off for some Mexican food at Barrio Chino—one of my favorites in NYC! That's when the real fun began.

Meet Ignacio. He was Becca's blowup doll companion for the night. He loves fish tacos, jalapeno margaritas and salsa dancing. 

We solicited signatures for Ignacio on the subway. Some profanities were written, but for the most part people kept it clean. (Not me!) I think this guy wrote something cheesy like "I hope your marriage lasts longer than this blowup doll!" Thanks, guy. (JK, he was nice!). 

At dinner, I asked a guy to sign Ignacio, but he signed me instead. I'm still trying to figure out why I let a total stranger get that close to me with a permanent marker! Sketchy.

Next we went to Sway for more dancing and bottle service. We were literally shoved off the dance floor at 4:10am. What a fun night!

The end of my night looked a little something like this:

I got a slice of pepperoni. Megan talked me out of getting a second slice—thank goodness! Then my breakfast/lunch the next day went a little something like this:

I didn't even wake up hungry, but for some reason I thought it would be "fun" to go crazy at McDonalds. I got two crispy chicken snack wraps, a large fry and a large Diet Coke. I didn't even want the fries, yet I got a LARGE. As soon as I devoured my greasy meal, my stomach started hurting. My body didn't want this junk. I didn't want this junk. I thought about why I made my trip to the Golden Arches and I really think it was a "reward" for doing so well with my eating Friday night and Saturday during the day. I do that a lot. Once I start doing well consistently with my eating and get compliments on weight loss, I loosen my belt a bit. Of course a cheat here and there is totally fine (and very necessary), but when I eat "just because" I feel totally gross and barbaric. Anyway, I digress.

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No amount of greasy fries could have taken away from the fun I had this weekend. Tell me, how was yours?

Photo Shoot Friday

Happy Friday everyone! My weekend started last night (one of the perks of not having a FT job, or as I like to phrase it, "being my own boss"). I went to a cookout with my friend Megan who is in town from Charleston and my sis, Liza. We planned to "just have one drink," eat a little food and go home. Sounds boring, doesn't it? Yeah, we thought so too. Of course, several bevs were consumed and LOTS of food was eaten. Below are a few pics from the night. 

Megan is the best shopper I know—the girl knows how to find a sale. Yesterday she got two basic tees and a pair of heels on sale at Bloomingdale's, and a pair of shiny leggings at TopShop—all for $100! I wish I had her patience to scour rack after rack. She found this striped top for me at ZARA for $10! She was the voice of reason during our shopping excursion in SoHo yesterday. I saw a pair of studded sandals at TopShop that I was dy-ing for, but she reminded me that I could find an identical pair at Urban Outfitters for half the price. She was right. (Sigh. I hate being broke in this city!)

People kept offering to take pictures for us, but I insisted that I could do just as good of a job. Not bad!

I'm aware this isn't the most flattering photo, but in the spirit of "Photo Shoot Friday," I decided to post it. 

Now here's a REAL photo shoot. We stopped by Liza's shoot in SoHo yesterday—she's a fashion editor at Women's Health!

This weekend is going to be a wild one. One of my BFFs, Becca, is having her bachelorette party in the city. Of course, I'm already worried about totally falling off the wagon in the eating department—I got a head start last night (sausage, chips, M&Ms, oh my!).

Wish me luck, my liver is going to need it :)

Please tell me: What are your tricks for controlling late-night munchies?? I don't want a repeat of the other night!

Weekend recap

So compared to my wild 'n' crazy bachelorette party last weekend, this one was a bit of a snore. I'm still not feeling 100 percent, so I kept it totally low-key. The last two days have been filled with sleep, movies and Subway--my favorite things!

Friday night Luke and I had a very wallet-friendly and tasty meal at Subway (we split a $5 footlong). Then we went to see a Woody Allen flick, Whatever Works, with Larry David and Evan Rachel Wood. I had read a few bad reviews, but didn't pay too much attention to them. Come on, if you're seeing something with Larry David in it, you know exactly what you're going to get. LARRY DAVID. I wouldn't say it's the movie of the summer, but it was definitely entertaining. The only thing missing was Cheryl Hines. Love her!

Anywho, Saturday and Sunday afternoon I did my Glamour reporting. Basically, I just walk up to random guys on the street and interview them about their dating and sex lives. The questions I asked weren't too invasive this time around, thank goodness. One time I had to ask guys about their "go-to sex move." Those were some interesting conversations!

I am so bummed that my camera died on me this weekend. Some of the most interesting characters can be found in the plaza-like area (Union Square for you New Yorkers) where we conduct our reporting. I don't have pics, but just to give you an idea, I saw: lots of shirtless bums getting their tan-on; hippie kids holding signs that said "FREE HUGS"; a freaky looking psychic that was giving free readings and a hula hooper that was contorting her body in the most unimaginable ways possible.

We finished early today, so I joined two Glamour editors (Hi Brittany and Jess!) to see Julie and Julia. I know it wasn't too long ago that I was crying like a baby about not having the money to go to the movies much anymore, and here I did it twice in one weekend! I felt a wee bit guilty about spending $12.50 on the ticket, but the only other things I bought this weekend were (another) $5 footlong and a $10 metrocard. Plus, I was just dying to see the movie. When I went to the American History museum in DC a couple months ago, I spent 1 1/2 of the 2 hours I was there in the Julia Child exhibit. She's so fascinating!

OK, now I'm rambling. Luke is making salmon and salad for dinner as we speak and we're getting ready to watch No Country For Old Men. Geeze, I'm starting to put myself to sleep with this chilled-out weekend! I feel like I typically live like either a 21-year old or a 40 year-old, with not a lot in between! ha

How was your weekend? Hopefully more eventful than mine!

The most economical bridesmaid dress EVER.

This morning I'm heading to Charleston, SC for Becca's wedding. I originally thought this was the ninth wedding I've been a bridesmaid in, but I'm only counting eight at the moment (I can't keep them all straight!) I'm sooo excited to celebrate her big day and to spend time with close friends. Ok, I'm looking forward to the partying, too. 

One of the things I love most about Becca is how laid back she is.  So laid back in fact, that she's letting us wear the same exact dress we wore in her sister Molly's wedding last October. (Her wedding party is the same). Becca, my bank account thanks you. 

Here I am with Liza dancing up a storm at Molly's wedding. Molly wanted us to feel great in our dresses so she let us choose the style we wanted. (Love that idea). Becca's colors are brown and pink, so instead of the green sashes, we are wearing this belt:

 Liza went to a fabric and crafts store in the Fashion District to get these pretty flowers and raw silk material. Even though I am absolutely terrible at any type of D.I.Y. project, I definitely think I need to hop on the bandwagon. It is the future. 

(FYI, I have new daily posts set up for while I'm out of town, so keep checking back!)

Click here if you missed Becca's bachelorette party in NYC!

Tell me: Have you been a bridesmaid before? What were the dresses like?