Bedside lights and table lamps always seem to catch my attention in home magazines and on decor blogs. I find that these pieces bring color, texture and pattern to a room, without seeming too bold or overwhelming. While some lamps can certainly be overpriced and out of reach, I’ve found a few awesome picks over the years at places like Target and Home Goods.

Below are some lamp shades and bases, available in store and online now.

Anyone in the mood for a summer redesign?

I took the train to New York City after work on Friday. The boyfriend and I flew out early Saturday morning. First stop: Cozumel, Mexico.

We spent 5 days in paradise, joined for a few days by the boyfriend’s best friend and his wife. The four of us scuba dived (yes, you heard me correctly), the two men golfed. We ate decent food, explored San Miguel and relaxed on the beach with plenty of pina coladas to go around. We also celebrated a certain someone’s 30th birthday (not mine). Golf, scuba diving, and tequila. I’m pretty sure he once said that would be his dream birthday. Well love, I guess dreams can come true (with a price tag, of course).

For much of the trip, I felt like we were the only couples on vacation here. Quiet, isolated, alone. We explored the windward side of the island, free from hotels, resorts and tourist traps. We watched the waves crash, alone on an empty beach. I spent an early morning by the pool, not another chair occupied. We watched the sun set over the bay, swaying in a hammock, beer in hand.

Cozumel was our perfect little getaway, and I think I could have stayed there forever.

On Thursday we flew to the mainland to join 40 of my friends from home for a destination wedding (not mine). Here there was a bigger crowd. The area was more commercial, the resort louder. More music (and booze), but also more friends. It was another wonderful portion to our vacation. Men golfed, ladies gossiped.

I finished two books, actually got a tan, and surprisingly avoided Montezuma’s revenge… with plenty of time in between for fun, drinks and dancing. Time for sun, massages and falling even more in love.

It’s funny how little I realized I needed a vacation, until I was thousands of miles away, far from the office, no laptop in sight. This vacation did wonders for me. Physically and emotionally. It cleared my head, filled my heart and made me a stronger person.

It cleared my head. During this trip I disconnected. I mean, we really, really disconnected. I gave myself permission to pause. Something I owed myself, but couldn’t before find the discipline to allow it.

It filled my heart. I shared love. In a multitude of ways. I fell more in love with my own relationship. With him, and us. I saw my best friend marry her soul mate. And I witnessed love in the most heart wrenching of ways – through the terror, the sadness, and the heroic stories that came out of my hometown, Boston.

It made me a stronger person. Seemingly insignificant given the tragic events that took place while we were away, I will forever be proud of what I accomplished this trip. The boyfriend challenged me to try something new, something that took months of preparation. Of planning, studying, practicing. Of coursework and classroom time and pool sessions. He encouraged me to become certified in scuba diving. Something that made me face all of my life’s biggest fears at once. The ocean, the openness, the darkness, the creatures, the risk. Literally all of my biggest fears are somehow involved in the idea of scuba diving. But I did it… I am so proud of myself, and so thankful to him for pushing me to try something new, to challenge myself, and face a fear (or two, or five).

Time and time again, you stop me in my tracks. You excite me and terrify me in the same sweeping glance. You paralyze me with fear while filling me with hope. A hope that one day you’ll be mine.

Dear New York City streets, you are beautiful. You stun me with your size, surprise me with your noise, and calm me in the early mornings when I find myself standing on an empty street. Lit only slightly from the rising sun, I find a quiet moment. I see shadows, I sense stillness.

In the middle of the street in the heart of the busiest city in the world. I feel happiness.

One day, one day very soon, you’ll be mine.

1. Spotted on Bauble Bar: Lilac Teardrop Tier Bib, Lilac Tab Strand, Brandy Pham Lilac Bar Pendant
2. True Religion Basic Lilac Misty Legging Finnigan Jeans on ShopBop
3. Cheap springtime sunnies from Target
4. A few shades of pretty by Essie: Under Where?, Lilacism, St. Lucia Lilac
5. Fresh flowers on a bedside table, seen here on Pinterest

Inspired by the blue sky and bright sun, I thought today would be an appropriate time to start rocking something colorful. I picked up this scarf from Zara last weekend while in New York City, and just cannot get enough of it. The mix of colors seems to match everything in my closet, and the geometric shapes are a fun change of pace from my normal neutral stripes and animal prints.

It’s probably also safe to assume that I’ve ditched the dark polish for something new. If you follow me on Instagram you’ve already seen this weekend’s color of choice. You know me, I have a habit of matching my nail polish to my scarf of the week…

Anyone from New England knows that weather around here is… temperamental to say the least. So while the calendar indicates that it’s officially spring, the temperature around these parts hasn’t quite caught up. That’s why I’m okay with the fact that it’s almost April and I’m rocking a dark nail polish. OPI Lincoln Park After Dark is a fall and winter time favorite, and I’m usually sad to see it go with the changing seasons.  But since I’m still donning a down jacket and scarf each morning…

One last OPI Lincoln Park After Dark nail polish party. Next up Essie pastels and OPI brights.

While dining out in New York City last weekend, conversation with friends led us to interesting “working world” realization. What is it with some companies respecting one’s unwelcome sick time more so than one’s well earned vacation time? If you’re a young, overworked and underpaid professional like me, I’m sure you’ve been here before, I’m sure.

You’ve planned it for months. Your vacation day (or maybe days) finally arrives and you are beaming with joy as you put up your out of office message. It’s not even 10:00 when it starts. Work emails (high priority) or calls, or texts…  they always start the same. “I’m really sorry to bother you on your day off…” Oh really? Are you though? If you were actually sorry about asking me to do work on my day off, you probably wouldn’t ask. You’d find a way to get it done. Ask someone else, maybe even do it yourself.

So we work all year to earn our vacation, only to work on our vacation.

But when you’re sick. Crickets. Silence. Incredibly wonderful, glorious silence. Sympathy, genuine concern. And silence. No emails, no calls, no “quick questions.”

And then this happens. You’re home sick. Really sick or maybe just a little sick, but regardless you’re sick enough to not be in the office. You should be in bed. Sleeping, hydrating, medicating. Whatever it is you do when you’re sick. Instead, you find your mind writing mental to do lists.

Your list quickly fills with all the things you meant to do last weekend, or the the things you would have done on your vacation day, had you not spent it actually working. Now you’re sick, doing laundry. Scrubbing the bathroom sink and vacuuming the apartment floors. Filing months worth of paperwork, and maybe even getting around to your taxes which have been staring you down for weeks.

Something’s wrong with this picture. We work all day, every night, and most weekends. We waste our vacation days working, and find time to do life’s little things only on days when we’re sick. It’s like we’re working ourselves sick as a last resort to actually get shit done.

Interesting.

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