In the back of my planner, I keep a bunch of pages open to write down words—things other people say that resonate with me. Usually I find these quotes in books, then I transcribe them. I think it's fun to flip through all of them, so I thought I'd share a few!

"She felt happy from her head to her toes, and she looked up at the sky with a feeling of gratitude that was almost a prayer." Carney's House Party, 160 Maud Hart Lovelace

"How much more respectable is the woman who earns her own bread by fulfilling any duty, than the most accomplished beauty!—beauty, did I say? So sensible am I of the beauty of moral loveliness, or the harmonious propriety that attunes the passion of a well-regulated mind, that I blush at making the comparison. . ." A Vindication of the Rights of Women, 240 Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley

"Prayer is the contemplation of the facts of life from the highest point of view." Self-Reliance, 16 Ralph Waldo Emerson

"I have always managed to live a rather fortunate bohemian life, by living beyond my means and employing a lot of magical thinking." Fear and Clothing, 280 Cintra Wilson

"Your wisest moments will be those when you say yes to God." The Purpose-Driven Life, 83 Rick Warren

"When people join groups where change seems possible, the potential for change to occur becomes more real." The Power of Habit, 88-9 Charles Duhigg

"The slower you move, the more poems you'll see." Dallas Clayton

Anyway, there's a few beautiful sets of words to brighten this August day!

All the love, 

Charlie

I have embarked on a question to discover how significant the price differences between grocery stores. To begin my quest, I recorded the prices and sizes products I regularly purchase or think would be useful measures of prices.

Here's the dl on Aldi. My personal favorite find was a dozen roses for eight dollars.

8-pack Reeses $1.25

12 oz Simply Nature Chia Seeds $3.99

12 oz Almonds $5.79

42 oz Old Fashioned Oats $2.39

11.75 oz Agave Nextar $2.99

half gallon Almond Milk $2.29 (no unsweetened option)

32 oz plain Greek yogurt $3.49

15.5 oz can black beans $0.59

1 pint blueberries $1.49

1 peach $0.69

16 oz Wholly Guacamole equivalent $2.99

bananas $0.44 per pound 

22 oz frozen chicken breast grilled strips $5.49

6 red roses $3.99; assorted bouquets also $3.99

Now, Publix! 

8-pack Reeses $1.89

12 oz Almonds $6.79, on sale for $5.99

42 oz Old Fashioned Oats $3.49

11.75 oz Agave Nextar $3.99

half gallon Almond Milk $3.29

32 oz plain Greek yogurt $5.39

15.5 oz can black beans $0.83

1 pint blueberries $8.00

1 peach $1.99

16 oz Wholly Guacamole equivalent $5.98

bananas $0.59 per pound 

22 oz frozen chicken breast grilled strips $8.99

12 red roses $14; assorted bouquets 3 for $12 (6 rose bunches included in this option) 

Well, that was fun. I do love grocery stores. They're like a museum, but interactive and more mun-daily-accessible. I love all types of groceries—Aldi to Whole Foods and everything in between. Interesting to see which items truly do differ greatly in price. It'd be interesting to add Fresh Market or Target to the analysis.

Hey, friends!

I just finished my first internship. I worked in the Marketing Department at HealthTexas Provider Network.

If you don't know what that is, neither did I. And to be honest, I'm not sure I still do. If I had to offer a definition, I'd say it's a group of medical practices that all function under the Health Texas name. So the Marketing Department of HealthTexas runs the marketing for every doctor practice in the network, about 150 health providers, from orthopedics to primary care. 

Even though my major is creative writing + public administration, not anything marketing or business, I worked with the marketing team. I lived with my aunt in Dallas for the month, did Pure Barre five days a week, and went to DryBar for the first (and likely only) time.

As I kept working, they let me do things that were more and more important. The first week, I stuffed envelopes, labeled folders, and made copies. The second week, I edited an award application. By the fourth week, I was interviewing different employees and crafting write-ups for the value report.  

I got to sit in on meetings, which taught me about how to accomplish projects over a period of weeks. I also got to see what it really looks  like to work in a business environment. Full disclosure: I was the only one in fun dresses. (Let's change that, ladies, shall we?) I also packed my lunch in mason jars, which people thought was adorable, and I ate overnight oats almost every day. 

10/10 would recommend an internship, even if you get stuck in the elevator for 45 minutes one day because you did jumping jacks! I learned a ton and got lots of good experience. Hooray!