A few weeks ago I went to this new thrift shop on Congress street. It's called 604 Thrift and it's amazing. I bought two dresses there for under ten dollars, one of which will be my birthday dress this year. The dress is white and has these two pink ribbons and bows on it which makes it look like a birthday package or cake. When I tried it on I knew that it had to be the dress that I wear to celebrate my birthday this year. I just need to hem it a little (ok so maybe my mom will hem it a little) and it will be good to go! The other dress was a pink Gap dress with little flowers on it and I found a nice bright pink belt. I don't know why I was having such a pink day that day, because pink isn't a color that I am normally drawn to.

I also managed to find a Pyrex dish set that was only $6. It seriously blew my mind how good the prices were there. I remember the days (like ten years ago?) when you could go to a thrift shop and actually find good deals on things you actually wanted and that was exactly what I found here.


I had originally forgotten the name of the shop, so I Googled it and found this review on Yelp:

http://www.yelp.com/biz/604-thrift-portland

It seems that someone else is a fan of the shop as well! I like that the reviewer mentions the dog that is there, because I love stores with dogs. I love dogs in general and to go to a shop that has a dog in it warms my heart like nothing else. Plus, how can you not love a place that has a little note in the dressing room to remind you that you are beautiful.

Memorial Day Weekend

After our annual trip to the Veteran's Cemetery in Augusta, we took a side trip to a vineyard/distillery in Union. They had so many adorable lambs! The fog made the Maine countryside look so magical.


We paid $2.50 for a glass and tasting of up to six of their different wines and spirits. I ended up giving my last choice to my uncle, so he could have another option. The glasses were adorable and one of my friends ended up drinking wine out of it last night. My two favorites of the tasting were the peach wine and the peach smashed port. I like sweet things and both of this were just sweet enough for me. I don't normally like wine, unless it's mead, but the peach wine was delicious enough for me to buy a bottle of it.

I can't remember what day it was this week, but I took a study break and went for a walk around the Eastern Promenade with one of my friends. A quick break for exercise is really good to help keep you focused when you are studying. The trail took us down to the Narrow Gauge Railroad. I loved looking at all the old train cars, specifically this Ocean Spray cranberries car.


There are so many different forms of beautiful areas in Portland and I am just starting to find so many of them. It's my new goal to get outside more often, explore more and just have an amazing time while I am in this city.

The tree in my neighbors yard is just starting to bloom/leaf out and it is so beautiful. I like to look out my window and watch the squirrels run around the trees or even just watch the new leaf growth sway in the wind. Green is my favorite color, so now that everything has started the regrowth process it is much more appealing to take walks around the neighborhood and around in town. The cemetery up in the East End has these trees that have bloomed this week and they are so beautiful. I forgot my camera at my apartment when I left to meet some friends at Silly's early this afternoon, so I wasn't able to take a photo of them. Maybe later this week I can manage to.

Yesterday started with a wonderful walk up and down Pine Point Beach. At first I pointed all the way to the end, saying that we were going to walk there. I knew that was an unrealistic goal to begin with, but sometimes it's nice to just say "yes, we are going to do that or attempt to do that and even if we don't make it the whole way, we will enjoy our journey." Which we did. I had some of the best and most understanding conversation that I have had in years. It is really nice to find a friend who can understand things that others try to, but just can't fully grasp. Not that I love those other friends any less, because honestly, all I can ask is for them to try and they do with a whole lot of love in their hearts.

I can't even fully describe how full of awesome yesterday was. I saw so many people, so many friends specifically and it was just amazing. The day was packed with fun times with my friends and my favorite foods, such as soft serve from the Dairy Corner in Scarborough and the hot bar at Whole Foods. We ended up having a picnic on the Eastern Prom after our trip to the hot bar and it was just so beautiful outside. I can't wait to have even more picnics this summer. I also got my first sunburn of the season on the back on my neck and a little color on my nose.

One of my favorite views of home. This weekend has been jam packed full of seeing friends and family. I don't know how I have managed to see so many people in such a short amount of time, especially now that I have finally come to the conclusion I am coming down with a cold. In a word, I am exhausted.

Recently I decided that I was going to take up running. My first step is to read a book called "Born to Run" by Christopher McDougall, which was suggested to me by my friend Erin (http://www.bluebirdbaby.typepad.com/) and also by my chiropractor. I am going to save up enough money to get a pair of sneakers that my chiropractor recommended (Nike Free) and then start running. Hopefully this will all take less than a month before I can actually start running. The goal is to start small and then be able to run a few miles at a time. I feel like having a small goal of a few miles is reasonable, since in the past I have not enjoyed running. Perhaps since I will be on my own and not being yelled at by a field hockey coach it will be more fun this time. I like to move my body and want to be able to enjoy running. So I shall start small and see where it will take me.

I took a walk at lunch with my mom and I brought my camera along with me. I'm not one to edit my pictures at all, so i try to take as many pictures as I can to make sure that I can get one that I like. Plus, it's hard to see what it even looks like on my camera screen outside. I am pretty sure I have dropped this old canon just a few too many times. There is also a nice layer of dust between the image screen and the protective glass over it. I keep thinking about upgrading to a fancier camera, but in a way I like to be limited in this way. I feel like it forces me to be a little more creative with my shots, since I know that most of them won't turn out the way I want them to.