Slice Of Life Summer

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Quote of the Week By Kinnerith Din

“Keep on going with your silly dream. Life is prettier than it may seem” — Laufey, “Letter To My 13 Year Old Self”

Dear Freshmen…

Late August is peak TikTok season. My feed is brimming with the joys of firsts: FDOC OOTDS, dorm room reveals, BamaRushTok — honestly, what more could a girl ask for?

Well, I would ask for more time. 

I miss the novelty of first-year: being young, wide-eyed, and naïve enough to believe I had it all figured out. The thrill of everything being brand new.

Now, as a junior with a trail of mistakes behind me — perpetually late to classes, surviving Econ 115, and changing my major three times — I find myself wishing I could relive those firsts. Sometimes, I wish I could whisper words of wisdom to my freshman-year self.

Since I can’t relive my first year or rewrite my past, here’s a little advice for you, with love:

1. Do things that scare you! Try out for the orchestra, even if you’ve never sung a day in your life. Apply for that fellowship. Befriend that girl in your English class!

2. Stay away from the “uncs”. (Yes, the super senior with a crush on you — RUN.)

3. Make mistakes. You only get four years before life insists on being serious. Fail, grow, and surprise yourself with who you become.

May the next four years unfold into endless possibilities of becoming. To the college freshmen, with love.

#Chellandria: A Beautiful Depiction of Sisterhood👯

If you haven’t heard of Chellandria, then what are you doing? The talk and top picks of Love Island USA, Chelley and Olandria have taken the world by storm. This week, they did an interview with Teen Vogue before the reunion talking about sisterhood, friendship drama and more. 

My favorite part was when they spoke about bonding over doing each other’s hair, a universal experience every Black girl can relate to. With “Blue Magic grease in one hand and a crochet needle in the other, while others socialized downstairs,” Chelley said. “That was a moment of like, ‘Yo, you're my girl. You know you're stuck with me, right?’”

Just like that, they were close from day one. 

Another one highlight of the show was when they got real about the challenges of being Black women on TV, the beauty standards they've faced, and the "mean girl" allegations from the public and costars. They addressed these rumors at the reunion, but through it all, their beautiful bond shone the brightest. Their sisterhood is the foundation that keeps them grounded.

“We're soul sisters for a reason,” Olandria said. “We'll always say, ‘God knew we needed each other.’"

Olandria & Chelley are undeniably the best duo to ever come out of Love Island USA. This isn’t up for debate. The sisterhood, the loyalty, the way they held each other down through everything? Simply Iconic!

A LOVE LETTER TO AUTUMN🍂

Summer’s sun is fading, and as we say goodbye to free-spirited energy and bottomless cocktails, our ins of this final week turn us to pumpkin spice and cable knit. Let’s peek into the best trends autumn will bring forth.

Building from the ground up: grab yourself a pair of Veja Recife sneakers. A classic leather sneaker matched with a velcro strap adds all the interest to your fit.

Next, a chunky belt and a long skirt are perfect for an elevated look: think Free People’s Sabine Suede belt.

If you’re looking for a good autumn soundtrack, Lake Street Dive’s The City Winery Sessions releases August 29.

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50 Shades of Summer👙

Summer colors make the time of the year feel light, hopeful, and full of joy — allowing you to channel your inner creative director and stylist in one. 

This season’s favorites have been bold yet versatile shades like Pantone’s Color of the Year Mocha Mousse that transitions effortlessly into fall, along with Butter Yellow, Wispy Pink, Moody Plum, and Crispy Blue. 

As summer comes to an end, it becomes our last chance to wear the brightest, quirkiest, most playful colors before going into hibernation in the fall and winter. Mix patterns fearlessly, try unexpected pairings, and don’t be afraid to go a little brighter than usual. 

After all, life is too short to not dress to impress – even when off-screen.

GLACE X Funny Face Bakery🍨🍦🍡

NYC just got a new dessert worth lining up for. The GLACE truck has teamed up with Funny Face Bakery at Rockefeller Center for a collaboration that’s quickly drawing crowds. Each morning, trays of Funny Face’s chocolate chip cookies are baked fresh and delivered warm to the truck, where they’re topped to order with a swirl of GLACE’s vanilla soft serve.

The combination is simple yet well-executed: a soft, chewy cookie paired with smooth, cold soft serve. It’s a high-quality NYC favorite, and that’s part of why it’s catching on. Photos of the cookie-and-soft-serve duo are already circulating on social media, and the hype shows no signs of slowing down any time soon.

The collaboration is available exclusively at Rockefeller Center and only for a limited time. If you’re in Midtown, it’s worth making a stop while it lasts.

Already Enough. 

Do you ever feel like you're only allowed to love yourself once you’ve fixed everything? As if peace is something you only earn once everything is fixed? That’s why I love theneurocosmic.com with Pearlieee. In one of her many episodes, she talks about accepting yourself as a whole. Not once you’ve healed or  ‘leveled up,’ but now. She reminds us: wholeness isn’t perfection. It’s choosing to love the version of you that’s still figuring it out. She also breaks down how a person's standards are a reflection of self-worth or what a person believes they deserve. She explains that raising them isn’t ‘asking for too much.’ It’s asking for what already matches your value. So no, you don’t need to become some ‘perfect,’peaceful, mysterious girl with a 20-step morning routine to be enough. You already are. 

Hostel Takeover🛌

If you’re anything like me, you’re balling on a budget. Traveling is expensive, but I quickly found that it doesn’t have to break the bank if you know where (and how) to save. Hostels are absolutely where I cave. 

Hostelworld.com is where I found all of my affordable stays. They’ll compare prices between a dorm bed or a private one. Ladies, always book a female only dorm if you’re choosing communal sleeping. I made the mistake of choosing co-ed once and discovered that it really means just all guys. 

Beware of ratings online – some hostels will leave good reviews for themselves and pay off customers with vouchers to delete their negative ones. Go to Reddit and multiple websites to verify a classy stay. I also looked to my favorite author, Rick Steves, to verify some hostels were quality-ish. 

Bring your passport everywhere! To check in, basically every place will make you show your passport at the front desk. Often even a picture of the document won’t suffice, especially in big cities. 

Staying in a hostel can be daunting, but it doesn’t have to be. Take time to research and you’ll enjoy lively social environments, good food, and clean spaces. 

BTS – A Labor of Love💌

Welcome back to The Interlude–otherwise known as Quiet Parts, the Column–with art and poetry pairings for the busy patron. 

Back-to-School this week, and I’m thinking about the single poem that always motivates me to post. This piece will chip away at any laziness or procrastination you might lean toward:

“Work is love made visible. And if you cannot work with love but only with distaste, it is better that you should leave your work and sit at the gate of the temple and take alms of those who work with joy.” 

– excerpt of “On Work,” by Khalil Gibran 

It’s a reminder that the truest work is done with love — a giving of oneself that transforms labor into art.

See you next week❤️