'Andrea Week'

It was long overdo. A week to myself, of myself, for myself. It was the perfect balance of everything, a balance I had yet to achieve. It was also slow paced, stress free and in many ways therapeutic. I got to do what I wanted, when I wanted. I decided to call it... 'Andrea Week'. In case you were wondering, Andrea Week consisted of:

• having the house to myself (with perfect weather)
• making my own schedule-no appointments no meetings
• donating or recycling 25% of my belongings
• recreating my design identity
• cleaning and organizing every closet/drawer/compartment I could get my hands on
• a visit from dad
• homemade sushi
• seeing new and old friends
• bonding with bu on our long runs
• a hammock fiesta

Most importantly, I had all the time in the world to think about my life, what I'm doing, and what I want to be doing. In other words, I feel like a new woman and this was probably one of the best spent weeks of my entire life. I essentially took the house apart and put it back together. Who would have thought that getting rid of all those useless items and clutter could be so beneficial. I can honestly say that I am aware of every thing I own, everything from what's under the bathroom sink to what memories I have in my keepsake box. 

I would recommend a week like this to anybody. My nonstop lifestyle kept me from stopping to smell the roses. I was working tirelessly and it was affecting my health, my attitude, my drive. I aspire to inspire, there is no doubt about that but it's still a very confusing time. Over the next few weeks I will be searching for my new design identity. This is important for designers to do because without an identity, who are you really? The next big decision is whether to go the non-profit or for-profit route. So many decisions and I don't want to make the wrong one. I now have a degree in Interiors but it's not my calling. I'm broke so more traveling right now is not an option. 

Although Andrea Week is coming to an end I don't feel sad. On Monday, Lauren returns from South Africa and I go back to my fast paced world that I've grown to love. I won't forget how powerful this week was. It enabled me to get organized and collect my thoughts. I now feel relaxed and up for a big challenge. I don't know what I'm meant to do yet but I feel it's something big. Something that will change the world. Call me crazy.

My dad says that this world isn't ready for someone like me, but I say...  Ready or not world, here I come.