Time Flies & Why It Isn't Always Terrible

It's been awhile since I've written anything on here. Life and work (and Netflix) happened and honestly, I forgot to blog. That's kind of what I want to write about today.

You know how when you're little and days seem to go on forever? And you'd hear adults say "time flies when you're having fun"? Well recently I've realized how time does fly, and let me tell you, it isn't just when you 're having fun.

For example, I thought we were still in May. I know, it's almost July but that's where my head was at. I was subconsciously hoping to slow down time, hoping that summer didn't go too quickly hoping that I wasn't turning 24 in the near future. It blew my mind to realize that it's been seven weeks since I moved out of my mom's house, and that it's been six months since I moved from working as a cashier to being an office manager at an architectural firm. It's been almost 14 months since I became an alumni of a Public Ivy, and almost THREE years since I left for my study abroad trip.

Time is flying, it's happening. I attribute it to the daily grind of 9-5, working every hour away towards that glorious Friday evening when you have the whole weekend before you and ready for adventures that usually result in three Target trips, a bank run, a 7 a.m. trip to the Farmer's Market and a weekend full of cleaning your already pretty clean apartment in your sweatpants that have a hole in a questionable place. And then before you know it, it's Sunday night and you're watching your twelfth episode of Extreme Couponing of the day.

And while it isn't always fun, I can't even say I hate it. I look forward to waking up early on Saturday mornings, to grocery shopping and going to buy fabric to reupholster my dining room chairs. I like that time is flying by in a way also because it makes the "now" parts that suck about life become not that big of a deal. Sure, I'd love for everything to be exciting and fun, but I'm really, really okay with life progressing, it's just adjusting to that that's the hard part. Time is fleeting but that just means that bigger and better things are getting closer quickly. That trip is coming up sooner and the money you're saving is adding up quickly, and Friday is speeding towards you, even if it is only Monday. And really, who doesn't want the weekend to get here as fast as it can?

A Taste of Royal Oak: Taste Love Cupcakes

Let's talk about cupcakes.

Connoisseurs of this sweet treat will know that sometimes paying  3 or 4 or 5 dollars for a tiny cake can be totally worth it. For example, the highlight of my last trip to Chicago was dragging my friends through the snow to the cupcake ATM a few (okay...a lot of) blocks away. The novelties, the ingredients, the presentation can all be reason to shell out those dollars for a few bites of dessert.

Additionally, I've been addicted to Food Network and the Cooking channel since I was ten. And if you've watched even just a few hours of those networks, you'll understand that America is cupcake crazy. Cupcake wars is a good indication of that, and  my little bit of tourism insight into Royal Oak, Michigan has ties to that very show.

Before I start, the cupcake bakery is not my favorite in the city. I like that store bought cupcake with that extremely sugary frosting and I also have a weakness for buttercreams that remind me of an old neighbor's cakes from my childhood. But Taste Love Cupcakes is definitely worthy of itself and the acknowledgements it gets.

Located at 304 S Main Street in Royal Oak, Taste Love Cupcakes is conveniently located right down the street from where I work. It's currently the only "cupcake only" bakery in downtown, holding it's ground thanks to winning Season 5 of Cupcake Wars' "Derby Dolls" Challenge. You walk into the pristine, white space and their display from the show is front and center.

Although they're famous for their Sweet Potato cupcakes, as well as their Red Velvets, TLC features different specialty and vegan cupcakes every day, all topped with their signature Red Velvet hearts. Yesterday I opted for a simple Vanilla Chocolate, which I much preferred over the extremely sugary Brown Sugar that I had a few months ago. A densely, vanilla speckled cake with the perfect amount of chocolate frosting, a definite repeat buy. Another girl from my office said their Lemon Cake was "the best cupcake she'd ever had", after I had escalated her hopes to crazy heights.

This is a definite stop if you're ever in the area, on any day other than Monday (they're closed that day). And make sure to stop in early because they close once they're sold out. If you're like me, opt for the classics, or buy a 4 pack, they probably won't last long. Any other Food Network spots we should hit up?

Year of Me Choice #1: Dwell on the Positive Past

To recap: I'm working towards life improvement by making intentional and thoughtful choices each and every day...then I'm going to tell you about them!

I'm a week into my Year of Me and I'm feeling pretty good. I always work well when I have goals in mind and though my goals are lofty, (inner peace, happiness, fulfillment, etc.) making small changes each week should break up those 365 days.

This week I went out to lunch with a friend (at a fantastic restaurant that I will talk about in a different post) and we got into a serious discussion about dwelling on the past. We were both feeling bad about all sorts of things (we seriously covered everything from hairstyles to past relationships). We agreed that we needed to find a way to accept the things that we cannot change and start remembering all of the greatness that has already occurred (not to mention all the good things ahead). I've been thinking about our conversation a lot over the past couple of days, and I decided it was time to break out a project that I started last year. Enter, the Year of Happy Memories Jar (Yes, I did just make up that name).

My 1st Year of Happy Memories Jar began New Years Day, 2013. My friend and I read all of our memories out loud on New Years Eve one year later. I loved reliving some of my best moments and it made me realize that after all was said and done, it really had been a fantastic year. No mention of a fight with friends or family troubles. Only the good was celebrated and it was perfectly acceptable for us to sit back and dwell on the positive past. 

During my Year of Me I'm going to continue my dwelling by breaking out (and actually keeping up with) my 2014 Year of Happy Memories Jar. I've got the jar, lots of colorful paper, and an endless supply of sharpies. Every time something happens that you feel was significant (You cuddled a baby duckling, perhaps a friend got married) write the memory and the date down on a slip of paper, fold it up, and toss it in the jar. Soon the memories will begin piling up! I'm going to open my jar on New Years, but really, the details are all up to you.

Suddenly dwelling on the past doesn't seem like such a bad thing, H :)

Choice #1: Dwell on the positive past with a Happy Memories Jar