Nom nom

I have 18 days left in Knoxville. In those 18 days I have come up with a bucket list of restaurants I need to eat at before I leave this city for good. Well, except for maybe one game day in the fall. Although it’s not my favorite city in the world I have found Knoxville has some very interesting restaurants that I have become addicted too. I don’t know if it was my immaturity or my lack of food knowledge but within these past four years I can say Knoxville has taught me how to have a sophisticated palette. Here are is a list of my top restaurants I need to go to one last time:

1)   Pres Court Dining Hall- just for the memories and unlimited amount of food

2)   Jai Dee

3)   Wok Chow

4)   El Mezcal (probably will be more than once)

5)   Shuck

6)   Chaiyos

7)   Tomato Head

8)   Cocoa Moon

9)   Café 4

 

I’ll be sad to leave some of my favorite comfort food restaurants where I’ve shared many meals and memories that defined my college career, but I’m hoping this list will bring me the closure I need to depart from my beloved favorites.

My Instagram trend

First I would like to start out saying that I love and always have loved Instagram. I like to think I started the Instagram trend thanks to the app TimeHop, which is an app that ties all of your social media accounts together and alerts you of the horrific things you have tweeted and face-booked in years past. Anyway, I tweeted back in 2011 to “Get the Instagram App!!!” So yes, I take all the credit for it becoming huge….HA I wish. 

Over the past three years I have used the app for different purposes. At first, I loaded any and all pictures I had in my camera roll to test out each filter, luckily no one was really on the app yet because I would post 5 in a row and receive absolutely 0 likes and think this was normal. For example:

 

The next stage was when I started getting into the double digits with likes. This feeling was similar to finding out you got your first college acceptance letter…

And then I eventually moved to where I am now…50 likes or more (Hallelujah) 

 

To some this is still a small amount of likes but to me its a success in my Instagram book. 

Some may also think its pathetic I’m sitting here writing a blog post about the number of instagram likes I get, which in a way sort of is, but my point was to show you how far Instagram has come. Now, I don’t necessarily use the app to load pictures of me and my life. I use it to find fitness inspiration, recipes, outfits, news, and so many more things. When I’m bored I’ll search Instagram for fashion tips or when I’m hungry I’ll look up restaurants to see if they post pictures of their food. Instagram has become almost a virtual phone book. I look up all stores and restaurants on the app before going there. So I would say to those who don’t understand the app, it’s much more than a narcissistic app where one just posts good pictures of themselves, its an app that leads you to new and exciting topics that you had no way of accessing before. 

pre grad thoughts

Graduation is quickly approaching which means so is the “real” world. We all know college years are the best years of your life but, like most things, you don’t realize it until it’s over. Well.. this is becoming more and more true as I have less than a month until graduation I am noticing the little things about college that I will never get back.

First, and most important, laying at the pool during the week during working hours. Up until this week I took it for granite but as I am starting to have more and more phone interviews during the week and business hours I’m noticing my pool hours are getting cut into. This is just interviews and I’m already bummed about it, can’t even imagine how I’ll feel when an actual job with no end date gets in the way of my UV rays….but at least I’m realizing now so instead of guzzling one too many beers and missing the moment, I can take five minuted to appreciate the pool thats 30 seconds from my front door and then crack a beer. 

Second, roommates. Not just any roommates, best friends. I have lived with the same girl my entire college career and my other roommate for the past two years. These girls know everything about me and I know everything about them. We have had countless sleepovers, dinners, emotional moments, so much of my life has happened with these girls and its all about to end in less than a month. I can’t talk about it anymore because I will actually start crying…but losing my roommates will be a huge adjustment.

Lastly, free time. This kind of goes with the pool thing but I don’t always appreciate my free time like I do the pool. I used to complain about boredom and how Netflix needs to update their movie and TV selection (then I discovered HBO GO). Now as I realize my four day weekends will turning into two day weekends and I will have to see Friday as a work day and not the start of the weekend.

As the days go by quicker and quicker I appreciate this town more and more. I am confident in saying I will never live in Knoxville again, so as much as I don’t like this place, it groomed me to who I am today.

 

#utsmw

This past week two other girls and I were in charge of running the instagram account for University of Tennessee’s Social Media Week, @utsocialmediaweek. I got a glimpse of what it was like to work in the social media world and I think it helped me figure out what field I want to get a job in!

Here was a schedule of the events:

 

Our task, as the Instagram team, was to gain followers, promote social media week and the guest speakers, as well as come up with real-time photos to grab our followers attention. The task was stressful yet exciting. Before the week began we had had to come up with a daily and hourly schedule of what we were going to post to promote the event and speakers. Once, the week started and we attended the events we were allowed to add impromptu photos to the account to show the followers what was currently happening at the sessions. To me, this was the best part because you never knew what was going to happen! We had our number one football recruit give a shout-out to #utsmw on twitter and we got to see Mayor Burchett fist bump Chancellor Jimmy Cheek.

We also got to hear and meet the infamous Paul Finebaum.

 

Overall, the week opened up a new world to me, the world of social. As a student listening to the panelists I learned about the opportunities social can bring to me on the job hunt and how it really is changing the business world. On the Instagram side I learned how to work in real time and how hard it is to actually get people to engage with you.

And since, I know you’ll be reading this eventually…Our teacher, Dr. Childers, did a fabulous job organizing this event! Everything went wonderfully, from the speakers to the audience turn out. It takes a lot of behind the scenes work to organize a week long event, especially a newer one, but she pulled it off!

Be sure to check out all our accounts– @utsocialmediaweek on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook! The official # was #utsmw.

Distractions

I’ve been back for over a week now and I’m still having withdrawals from the European way of life. Iv’e adapted my eating habits to eating a late dinner like they do across the pond and always having a coffee in my hand. I wish I could walk everywhere like I did over there but the knoxville weather and my sleeping habits don’t allow me to do so.

To keep me distracted from processing that my final spring break is over, I have decided to start training for a half-marathon. As of today I have 6 weeks until the race. I’ve been running consistently for the past year. I started out a year ago, spring semester, running 3 miles 4-6 times a week. I did that for most of Spring until I moved home for summer and started my internship and social life. My running schedule went down to three days a week and I was usually just running 1-2 miles on top of going to the gym. When I got back to school in the Fall I started on my 3 mile path again and that continued until one day when I woke up and had a panic attack because I thought I was gaining weight.  Thats when I decided to up my run to 5 miles and eventually got to 7 miles and then 8.

However, after my 2 week hiatus from working out while I was in Spain I have found in extremely difficult to get back up to my high mileage. The most I’ve run has been 4 miles and I’ve already been back for a week! I’m starting to get a little nervous that I won’t get my endurance back but I’m trying to push through it. I found a running routine to train online off pinterest.

On a side note, It’s really amazing what you can find on pinterest. I made an account for the site when I first heard about it 2 years ago but I never really fell in love with it. Now, I go to it for EVERYTHING. Recipes, exercise routines, clothes, gift ideas…its amazing. Its like a personal journal where you can find any ideas, even one’s you didn’t know you were looking for.

I’ll keep you posted on my half marathon training. Doesn’t look like I’ll be getting anything done today considering this monsoon Knoxville is having right now!

Jetlagged

I survived, which according to my mother was a serious concern, but here I am back in the good ole’ USA! My trip was AMAZING. I arrived in Barcelona around 7:30am their time which is 2:30am our time. I was as wide eyed as ever and ready to take on the city. However my boyfriend Max, who was the one picking me up from the airport, was ready to go back to sleep the second we got to his apartment. I guess my body agreed with him because I immediately fell asleep too. Once we woke up, he had to go to class but luckily (or not so luckily as the week goes on and the house gets dirtier) he lives with 5 other boys who I went to high school with who were there to entertain me.

My first purchase in barcelona was a cafe con leche which is a ‘coffee’, term used loosely because its about two sips, with milk. I sat and drank it at a coffee shop across from his apartment. The shop also served Tapas which are little snacks you get that can be a meal or just an appetizer.

 

After that, the 12 days flew by from there. The food, the architecture, the shopping, the culture everything was AMAZING. Like they say, “Pictures are worth a thousand words” so I’m just going to post some pics with a little background story.

This is Parc Guell. Its a huge park designed by the famous Spanish architect Antoni Gaudi. It overlooks all of barcelona and the Mediterranean Sea.

     

Above are pictures from the Boqueri Markets. Let me tell you that was some of the freshest fruit I have ever tasted and it was really cheap, usually only 1 euro for a huge bag of grapes or a cup of strawberries; and yes the fish and meat were all out in the open for you to carefully select and watch be cut up right in front of you. Hey, at least you know exactly what you are paying for.

 

More famous buildings designed by Antoni Gaudi on the famous Las Rambles street.

The best part of Barcelona is that it is a large city, but it also has a beach. Next to the beach there are plenty of restaurants for you to sit and drink sangria in the warm sun because oh the best part….IT NEVER RAINS IN BARCELONA. It was 75 and Sunny the entire time I was there. ❤

 

The night life is just as glamourous as you are imagining. We went to three different clubs, all were extremely fun and out of control. We even went to one bar that served flaming shots.

 

7 days later I began my next adventure which was to Sevilla, Spain to visit my best friend who is studying abroad there. It was about an hour and a half plane ride to southern Spain.

Max and I with Sevilla in the background.

Sevilla was a lot different than Barcelona. No one spoke English and the city was smaller and more historic than Barcelona.

If you are looking for a complete culture shock go to Sevilla. They stay true to there Spanish roots and don’t like if you don’t attempt to speak Spanish to them. Most of the people genuinely could not speak any english so it was difficult, yet fun, to communicate with them.

Over the past 12 days I got to experience the study abroad semester I never got to go on. I loved every second of it and can’t wait to go back to Europe!

 

 

 

return on influence review

Mark Schaefer did it again. Schaefer pointed out yet another new way to become successful via the social media world. Whether we like it or not we are being judged by our online personas. Thanks to Klout, social scoring, and influence marketing a whole new online revolution is beginning but, do not fear, ROI shows you how to tackle your presence and use it to benefit you.

“Creating content is an action. Having a link clicked or a message retweeted is an effect.” Schaefer’s wise words challenge us to take an action online and create content rather than simply ‘like’ and move  other peoples content. Although, that is not a bad thing and you need people to do that for you in order to raise your influence online, it’s crucial you are creating your own content and upping your Klout score. If you don’t know what a Klout score is you are already behind with the latest revolution. Klout uses social media analytics to calculate and rank its users by social media influence with a Klout score. Whether you knew that or not, by being online you have a score. Schaefer gives simple steps to up your Klout score and become an influencer online. These steps are:

1. Build a relevant network

2. Have a strategy to provide compelling content

3. Systematically engage influencers who are most willingly to distribute your content virtually

Schaefer makes a powerful point on authority figures in the networking world. Officially their aren’t any. This is where you have to step in and become an influencer. People look to other people for answers. You should be one of those people. Brands are looking for strong influencers to push their products out to their followers. In today’s fast pace world its crucial to stay ahead and Return On Influence gives you the knowledge to be one step ahead of your competition.

1 more day

Tomorrow is the big day! I depart from Knoxville around 3:28pm where I go to Philadelphia to catch my connecting flight to BARCELONA (caps because it’s necessary). I am still in awe that I am leaving the country for my second time, first to Europe, and on top of that doing it alone. I have mixed feelings about the alone part. I like how no one will be there to slow me down, anyone who knows me knows I do everything at a very fast pace, but I’m scared to step off the plane alone. Everyone claims Barcelona is extremely english friendly, but I still have my hesitations.

On the plane, my options of entertainment are endless. I can’t decide between Dallas Buyers Club, 12 Years a Slave, a good book, or the TV series Suits. I know in my other post I said some NyQuil would be involved but I’ll be so antsy I doubt I’ll get any sleep.

Side note though, I haven’t slept in two days because I have so much school work to knock out before I go. In hindsight I probably shouldn’t of made my flight mid week the week before spring break because thats when the mosts test, assignments, and projects are due, but the thought of being in Spain in 48 hours makes it a little less miserable I’m stuck in the library while its 70 degrees outside right now. 

So, while I’m procrastinating studying for my finance test, packing, and finding research for my campaigns project, I decided to look up the best apps for english to spanish translation. Maybe thats what I’ll do on the plane, brush up on some spanish. After all I took it for three years in high school and then thought it would be a brilliant idea to become trilingual and take French when I got to college. It really turned into me being TRY-lingual, as in I forgot all my Spanish I had learned and French was just too hard, so I’m back to just being fluent in English.

Anyway, I came across the app called Jibbigo. It seems legit because the phone will speak the translated phrase which will help when I’m looking for the baggage claim in the Barcelona airport and my accent just isn’t cutting it with the locals and because I’m not Shaq and don’t spend $1000 dollars a week on apps (thanks Mashable http://mashable.com/2014/03/11/shaq-apps/) I also like it because it’s free!! Who doesn’t love free…

On another note, I didn’t realize how much money it costs to prepare for a trip. I’ve gone on spring break every other year but just the typical PCB and Destin, FLA trips where I just needed bathing suits and food. This trip turned out the be much more…needy, especially without my mom. On top of my flight, which was a steal thanks to of http://www.expedia.com, I have spent an extra 300ish dollars. It doesn’t help that I love to shop or that my tax returns came at a perfect time (what’s a budget?). I also had to get some necessities for the people I’m visiting. The number one thing my friends asked for was peanut butter. Apparently they don’t have it over there which is mind blowing because peanut butter is amazing and can be incorporated into every meal. I felt there pain when they called asking me to bring them some. They both surprisingly asked for Jiff, so I guess there are some brand loyal peanut butter people out there. I’m not so picky as long as it’s reduced fat. The second thing they asked for was deodorant. It’s common knowledge Europeans aren’t known for their personal hygiene so I wasn’t surprised by this, and of course happy to help. Mainly because I have to be around them all week, don’t need anyone smelling.

Hopefully my apps work and I’ll have some good movies, books, and Tv series under my belt by the next time I post. Signing out from America!

Preparing for Barcelona

In four days I’m heading to Spain for my final spring break…..[pause for a moment of silence]. I figured I should go out with a bang and head to Europe to visit my friends who are studying abroad. I’ll be in Barcelona for seven days and Seville, Spain for three days. I am extremely excited about crossing the pond for more than one reason. 1. its BARCELONA, the party capital of the WORLD!! 2. I can cut some slack on my spring break diet since I won’t be sitting on a beach or a boat like the rest of my school, thank god.

I’m also anxious and nervous about leaving the country. I know little to no spanish and I am traveling there alone. Stepping off the airplane and finding my friend is going to be the most nerv-wracking part. Luckily, I have a 7 hour plane ride to brush up on my spanish with a spanish dictionary. However, it’s an over night flight so between the nyquil and advil pm, we’ll see how much reading gets done.

To prepare for my trip I’ve done some research and found this really cool website where I can find Barcelona and Seville itineraries with food, shopping, and attractions.

http://www.fodors.com/world/europe/spain/barcelona/feature_30005.html

My main focus is finding the best food and tapas. I can’t wait to try all the fresh ingredients and homemade recipes. My mouth waters everytime I receive a snapchat from a friend over there when they go out to eat. IT ALL LOOKS AMAZING.

Can’t wait to share all my pictures and stories of my adventures when I get back!

Stay tuned,

Tori

West Coast-Best Coast?

Graduation is quickly approaching and up until recently I’ve chosen to ignore the fact that i’m  potentially  going to have to move back home to Maryland and live with my parents and two younger high school siblings. For the summer, it doesn’t seem that bad, free food, free vacations, free everything compared to now… BUT, I see that getting very old, very fast come fall when the sibs go back to school and my mother becomes bored and starts to occupy her time by worrying about my future. So, I am in the predicament now of where I want to live.

I have been dreaming of becoming a “New Yorker” since I first laid eyes on the city when I was 8. The air, urgency, people, fashion, excitement, everything about it appealed to me. Not to mention when I was old enough to start watching the Sex in the City series, the move become more of a need than a want.

However, this past winter break I spent New Years on the West Coast in San Diego, CA. It was not love at first sight for me, in fact it made me miss the big apple at first. The beach bum lifestyle just didn’t match my living requirements. A couple days in however, I started to fall in love. I am a runner. I have to run. It decreases my stress, makes me feel good, and is simply great exercise. I ran everyday in California and as the days went on I  took more of a notice to how everyone was always outside. Walking, shopping, eating, surfing, running, people were always out and about. There was not a fast food restaurant in sight, except In and Out burger, which was an experience, and that was fine by me.

Besides the image above, California had such a different lifestyle than the East Coast. You could tell everyone was active and relaxed and approached the world in a different way. After my week long visit  with 70 degree weather in early January and this miserable winter were having on the East Coast, I am second guessing my NYC life I have been dreaming about.

Just in case you were wondering what West Coast life is like..this would be my typical day:

Waking up to this

Running along this

Taking my future dog to play here

and then going to bed to this

 

or I could stay put and deal with this ….

 

I’ll keep you posted on my decision.