To Do, 2011

6. Dress like a girl.

I was born and raised in New York, meaning that most of my clothing is black or grey. Or navy. I own one peach-hued James Perse tee and I believe that that's it. I want to start indulging in pops of color, incorporating them just subtly enough that it doesn't look too awkward with my usual dark palette. A gold belt here, a pair  of red shoes there. I'd might as well combine this with my effort to dress more like a girl — my uniform isn't even boyish, but full-on lazy: grey tee, skinny jeans, a soft leather jacket, dark blue suede boots, every single day. I have so many Diane Von Furstenberg and Vena Cava dresses that go unworn and just have a regular party in my closet. This needs to be amended.

5. Play pretend.

I somehow weaseled my way into a highly sought-after creative fiction course on fabulism, which focuses on fantasy writing such as that by J.R.R. Tolkien and Lewis Carroll. Even if Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland wasn't a cinematic breakthrough, I couldn't sit still afterwards because I was too busy trying to figure out how I'd fare in Wonderland. Is that silly? I mean, I'd love to come across a fluffy cat that appears out of thin air as much as I'd enjoy pouring myself some tea and finding a dormouse in my mug. It would be spectacular. I feel like when writing, as a twenty-one year old girl, I'm so focused on impressing everyone and their mother that I forget the enormous value of my imagination in the process.

4. Move to France, even if for two weeks.

Everyone — well, mostly my parents — thinks that this is some big pipe dream, but I've opened a savings account and will book a flight upon graduation. I have to. I don't know why I'm so madly in love with this city, but there's something inside me that keeps insisting that living in Paris is something I must do, without a question. Plus, I've taken French for four years because I've always known that one day, I'd eventually have to bargain down the price of a wheel of Brie.

3. Prepare.

I need to find a job and for that, I'm going to have to practice my interview skills. On the bright side, I can polish my resume while sitting beneath a gorgeous inspiration board like this one. I didn't want to throw in a picture of me, curled up and crying hysterically, at the moment I realized that I said I have impeccable grammar when asked about what sets me apart from other candidates. (This is a true story). (...good grammar is seriously underrated).

2. Manger des macarons!

From Laduree, naturally.

1. Be awesome...

...even if I don't get a job offer before graduation and have to sit behind a little crêpe cart in a seedy part of Paris. The seedy part of Paris is probably nicer than the seedy part of Poughkeepsie, anyway. It would also mean that I have a large supply of Nutella and no one to stop me from eating all of it. Awesome? I believe so.

[photo cred to mskstreetfashion.ru, We Heart It, Oliveaux, Oh Happy Day!, Daffydil]