March was a bit of a slow month for me as well as one that was ultimately confusing. It was a bit of a mental health struggle, as it has been for a while, and it came to a head in March. I was confused, flustered, overwhelmed, scared, and filled with a ton of physical anxiety. Truthfully, most of it was probably because of a mix of hormones, getting word we had to go back to the office, and preparing for my Nashville trip.

I've been super vague about my struggles lately but will tell the full story in dual time. In March, I also did a ton more shopping than in the past two months of 2022 so there are a ton of new favorites. I will try not to babble too much longer so we can get to all my favorites. 

 Long time no talk! I took last week (and a few days this week) off from blogging because I was very stressed and was preparing to travel to Nashville. I came back from the trip on Sunday and have just been trying to settle in and get back into a routine.

We'll get more into my updates at the end of the week because I really want to get right into the book review. "The Roughest Draft" was one of the books I was anticipating most in 2022. I pre-ordered it, read it immediately, and loved every moment of it. It was a near-perfect romance novel with a lot of great messaging woven throughout. Plus, I am a sucker for books about writers or books... it's my favorite type of setting and subplot.

 It was years ago that I posted my first review of the Essie Expressie line of polish. It was released in 2019 and I bought two shades to try out. The idea of Essie Expressie is that it's a quick dry polish that you can take with you on the go. The brush is just as thick as a regular Essie polish but with a little bit of an angle so that you can have a little more control while applying nail polish somewhere other than a flat surface. 

Back in 2019 when I first posted the Manicure Monday, I gave the polish a glowing review but after trying another shade, I was not into the formula. I found it very messy and almost unuseable; the polish chipped easily, the shades I had were dark so it got all over my cuticles and nail beds.

After a few uses, I was unimpressed and threw the polish out. In general, I'm a little over Essie because I haven't found anything to love in their new collections and Olive & June is a better formula but that's not why we're here today.

Essie continues to release new Expressie collections so clearly someone was enjoying them. The new collections and shades were gorgeous and always stopped me in my tracks because I needed the polish color. However, I controlled myself and didn't buy a new shade because why I would buy something that didn't perform well? 

 I don't know where this week went. I was in rough shape at the start of the week but I'm coming out of it now and hoping that I can try to be present and calm for the next two weeks. I'm going to Nashville next week and traveling always makes me a little anxious, just being pulled out of my routine isn't good for my mental health.

I also have to go into the office next week (just for one day) and it's the first time I'll be working outside my house in two years and it's stressing me out. I just have a lot of my mind and want to get through the next few days with calm and ease. 

Right now, I'm relaxing, watching Jersey Shore, and wanting to fall asleep... just your typical Thursday night!

Let's get into the wrap-up.

I have been feeling some type of way lately. I feel lost, confused, self-conscious, and filled with so much doubt. I don't know what I want out of life, what I'm working toward, or how to come into my own. Life feels really confusing and overwhelming right now and I need some guidance.

Because of that, I've been nose deep in every self-help, empowering book I could find and this was one of them. "Girl on Fire" is included in Kindle Unlimited and is by an author that I've followed on and off for years. Cara Alwill Leyba wrote "Girl Code" back in the day and the book was everywhere. She became an inspirational, women empowerment icon and has written several other books based on that messaging. 

"Girl on Fire" is her latest, published in 2019 and it is a short, empowering book full of exactly the words you want to hear. I devoured the book within a few days and highlighted so many paragraphs and nuggets of wisdom that I wanted to come back to in the future. 

 Over the years I have experimented with many different fitness trackers. I've used Kate Spade's SmartWatch, Fitbits, Jawbone Up (RIP to that brand), and more in between. They were all fine, I liked them enough but eventually, I got sick of using them. 

They felt like a chore, an annoying thing to wear on my wrist and at some point, I just stopped wearing them every day. That is until I got the itch to start wearing one again and of course, needed a new one to go along with the renewed habit.

The want for a new fitness tracker started at the end of 2020. I wanted to keep it simple: just track my steps and my sleep. It was around the time Amazon and WW were partnering on a new tracker called 'Halo' and I immediately bought it. I was less than impressed and quickly returned it because it just wasn't my vibe. It had no screen, it was uncomfortable and it seemed a little over-complicated for my liking. 

I purchased this generic one from Amazon instead, and that novelty quickly died down because it was honestly just not a good tracker and felt too bulky for my liking. However, at the start of the new year, I wanted to get back on the grind and saw that Amazon and WW partnered on a new version of the Halo called 'Halo View' and I was quickly sold.

It's been about two months of using the Halo View and I really like it! There are virtually no cons to it and I am definitely not even using it to its full potential but I figured I'd do a check-in review and let you know.

Contrary to popular belief, I am in fact *like other girls*. I have always been part of the crowd, and if I am not, I make sure I am part of it. I don't like being left out of a cultural moment. If something starts to get popular, I will jump right on the bandwagon. I do not care about being different or standing out, I like to blend right in just like the others.

Some might call that being basic... or even *cheugy* and they would be right. I don't care what anyone says, I love being basic.

I love everything about being a basic white girl and I will not apologize. I never really cared what anyone thought of me, even if they were laughing at my expense. My friends and family have teased me in the past for liking all the things that are 'the same as everyone else. There is rarely something I like that others do not... but in reality, there is a community for everything nowadays.

In high school and college, this was most prevalent. It wasn't that my friends weren't basic but I was the all-encompassing 'basic girl'. I remember in college there was one day where I was dressed in black leggings, my sorority letters, ugg boots, a Lonchamp bag, and had Starbucks in my Lilly Pulitizer coffee mug. I was the poster child for what a typical college girl looked like and truly, I loved every moment of it. It's who I am and who I have always been. 

At the same time, while I embrace it, I shouldn't have to, you know? I should be able to enjoy what I like without being ridiculed because others deem it too popular. What is wrong with popular? I'm tired of women of all types being shamed for what they love, just because they seem trivial.

I can't care about pop culture but men can know every Yankee player and their stats from 1985? Why are some categories deemed basic while others are respected? We should just let everyone like what they like!

Happy Friday! This week was so/so. I was very up and down in terms of my mental health and got official word that we will be headed back into the office on April 4th, which is not what I wanted to hear. I'm very stressed about having to make this big change but it's only for 2-3 days a week so I'm trying to look on the bright side of things. 

I'm looking forward to staying in and relaxing this weekend. I want to read, watch television and just relax because the next few weekends are really busy for me. I leave for Nashville in two weeks and I need to start laying out my clothes and getting things together. 

Right now, I'm watching "The Dropout" on Hulu and I will never not be fascinated by Theranos and Elizabeth Holmes. It's fascinating and I'm constantly enthralled by the way she made so many people believe in the product. 

There have been so many incredible shows on streaming services lately, I am excited about all of them: How I Met Your Father and Pam & Tommy are two of my current favorites but I want to get into The Gilded Age on HBO Max and I need to watch 'Pieces of Her' on Netflix, based on a fantastic book by Karin Slaughter. *I did a review on the book a few years ago. 

PS: I just posted a new Youtube video where I unboxed THREE different handbags (yep, I have a problem)

I will stop the rambling now and get into the post. 

I read "Local Woman Missing" at the beginning of the year when I was just getting sick with Covid. It kept my mind occupied and busy while I had the worst sore throat of my life and it was one of the best distractions I could've asked for.

This book had been on my radar for quite some time and I'd been meaning to get around to reading it but the stars aligned and it had my full attention for a few days. This was one of those traditional thrillers that grab your attention from the first page and kept me guessing until the last minute.

 This post is sponsored by Fundrage but all opinions are my own.

I have learned a lot about myself over the past few years; I am very empathetic, sensitive, and truthfully, a bit angry. There's been a lot of things that have made me feel angry over the past two years and in the same breath, those events have made me incredibly sad. 

From the pandemic to George Floyd, the election, mass shootings, and all the humanitarian issues happening around the globe at any given moment, there has not been a shortage of things to be concerned about, to want to fix. 

Those emotions that I feel whenever something major is happening in the world is frustrating because it makes me feel helpless. The only way to get over that feeling is to try to turn that anger and sadness into something, even if it's as easy as donating a few dollars to an organization that is helping whatever problem is lighting a fire inside you. 

Enter Fundrage.

I am not someone who has ever indulged in the beauty dupe world. Most of the time it seems like no two products are alike; if it's a lipstick shade, it's never exact and foundations are so specific to the person it's hard to compare two. Also, I am someone who loves buying expensive beauty products. It is my privilege to show, yes, but if I want a specific makeup item, I want that item for a reason; for the beautiful packaging, quality, fun marketing, and the brand name. 

I don't think I personally have ever come across a dupe in my collection... until now.

 Happy Friday! This week was slow and fast at the same time but nonetheless, it was an ok week. I'm ready for the weekend, to see some friends, get some work done, and chill out. I'm doing my best to soak up every moment at home before a whirlwind few months start...and before I have to head back to the office three times a week. I'm not ready and that is another post for another day.

As I'm writing this, I don't have too much to ramble about because I barely slept last night and my brain is fried. Let's just get right into the post! 

 I first heard of Jeneva Rose during the pandemic when she went viral talking about her novel, "The Perfect Marriage". I love hearing and watching authors talk about their books so I was intrigued. It just so happened, that her latest novel, "One of Us is Dead" popped up on Netgalley and I was approved for an arc.

One of Us Is Dead will be released on April 26th but I finished reading it a few weeks ago and was completely obsessed. It was an addictive novel that I read within 24 hours... I could not put it down.