Today is Marie’s birthday. What better way to start the day off than with a healthy breakfast and a delicious fruit tart all in honor of the birthday-girl! It’s amazing how a quick gathering really makes the day more creative.  It kept us smiling all day!

/Stephanie

Love is in the hair and in the air (at the office)! To celebrate Valentine’s day we all had a nice coffee break testing the new BODUM BISTRO Pour Over Coffee Machine accompanied by our everyday favorite: the CHAMBORD Milk Frother. The last couple of weeks have been really hectic for us so we haven’t really had the time for coffee-breaks and chit-chat. There are some new faces at the office and what better way to get to know each other than sitting down, having some coffee and topping that of with awesome cupcakes beautifully presented with Fusionbrands® serveitup?

Spreading the love,

/Stephanie

From Left: Cristina, Square Colander, Julia and Scoop Colander (all in Aubergine).

Sponsored by Joseph Joseph.

Yesterday, as I was walking home from Trader Joes, the local supermarket on 21st & 6th, I found myself thinking about how fast we humans adapt to new environments. Whatever situation, good or bad, happy or sad – we get used to it. When the situation is bad we strive for something better and when the situation is good – well, we do the same. I’ve always had that nagging feeling in the back of my head, telling me that the grass is greener on the other side, that whatever I wish for is just around the corner if I just reach a little further. This feeling is deeply human, I know. It is the strive for improvement that drives humanity, technology and research forward. I know this, I read the articles. Still I cannot help but to think that this constant longing for something better might be keeping us from enjoying what is right in front of us.

The present, however mundane, ordinary or slow it may seem at the time, is what we should be focusing on. In a couple of years these are the times we look back on through our rose-colored glasses while telling to ourselves - those were the days. Knowing this, I want to be able to appreciate the present – before it becomes the past.

Unfortunately, living in the present has never been a strength of mine. I have a tendency to always rush ahead, thinking and worrying about my next move. Should I go for a master or a double bachelor? Should I stay in New York or go back to Malmö? Should I pursue a career in PR or look for opportunities to work for a Magazine? Should I cut my hair short or grow it out? Obviously, all of my worries are not life altering, but still – they are giving me a headache.

A wise friend of mine once told me that life is like driving a car in the dark – you can only see five feet in front of you but you can still make it all the way to China. The truth is I rarely know where I’m going. I do, however, know that I’m on my way there, and maybe that’s enough for now. I try to keep this in mind when that anxious, terrifying feeling of the future comes creeping up on me. When it does I just take a deep breath, inhale and exhale, telling myself that I know, deep inside, everything is going to be just fine.

Now, exactly two months before my Twenty-fifth birthday, I’m glad to say life has treated me well. Sure, I had my rough patches, doubts, loss and insecurities but I always made it through, not always wiser but always stronger than before. I like to think that life has taught me some lessons along the way. I know now that comparing my inside to other people’s outsides gets me nowhere, that I am in control over my own destiny and that even the deepest darkest sadness fades with time.

I recently came across a book by Regina Brett called God Never Blinks. I never considered myself much of a religious person so I was surprised to find a quote that really stuck with me. It’s a little something I plan to carry with me when life decides to hand me trouble - to bring me comfort in moments of despair. It goes as follows:

“When God is planning something great - he starts out with a hardship. When God is planning something extraordinary - he starts out with the impossible.”

With this said, I will continue doing my best, turning my worries into anticipation.

After all – everything worked out pretty good so far.

/ Anja

I never dreamed about coming to New York. It’s not that I didn’t think it was a great city, it just never really caught my attention. I had seen it featured countless times in movies, TV series and documentaries. After a while it felt like I knew it already, so I spent my vacations in other places that were more unknown and exotic.

I’m a communications student at the Cologne University of Applied Sciences  and when the time came for me to look for an internship, I wasn’t too sure about which direction I should go or what I wanted to do. Then I suddenly found an ad for a 6 months internship at JB Cumberland PR in New York and suddenly I was hooked by the placement description.  Within a couple of months, I had given up my apartment, finished my papers for school, applied for my visa and booked flights.

To my surprise I fell in love with New York at once. I had grown up in Sao Paulo, a tremendous city, before moving to Germany, where in comparison, every city seemed to be just too small. A friend of mine once said “You can take a person out of the city, but never the city out of a person,” and it wasn’t until I came here that I realized how much I had been missing the big-city life. There is something very comforting in the noise, the people, the rhythm and the anonymity.

All seemed very familiar right away, and I learned that most clichés are actually true. Cab drivers do yell and honk constantly, Starbucks seems to own half of Manhattan’s coffee shops, people text or talk on their phones while walking, the deli in the corner of my street turned into a restaurant after a month and then into a bank soon after.

In the city that never sleeps, time flies by.

At the office, only my second week here, we prepared press kits, printed out an endless amount of badges, table cards and searched all over the city for a specific shade of green paper for a press event. It was a great success, and it we had a lovely time getting to know the client in person.

So much has happened since I arrived, I haven’t yet had the time to let it all sink in.

I saw a different side of New York – when abruptly all activity seemed to stand still, and it was quiet — while we prepared and waited for Irene, a devastating hurricane that drove people to empty the shelves at grocery stores, evacuate their apartments and stock up on candles and flashlights. Suddenly the ever-crowded streets were empty, Times Square deserted and shops were closed.

Everything I have experienced here has already influenced me in one way or another. Most of all has been the people I’m meeting. Being so far away from home can be a challenge, but it is so much easier when you feel honestly welcomed and part of an amazing team.

I have moved to a new country, city or home five times already. They say with practice comes perfect — but when it comes to leaving and saying goodbye, I haven’t yet learned how to do it.

But I will figure that out later.

For now, bring on the table cards, badges and reports.

Although unplanned and unexpected, New York and this internship have already exceeded everything I hoped for.

/ Julia

With fall in full swing I cannot help but to reminisce on my time here in this greatest of all cities. Four months and 23 days ago, I set off for what was going to be the biggest adventure of my life; leaving all that was familiar, safe and known behind for something new, daunting and unfamiliar. Looking back, knowing what I know now, I can’t believe I wasn’t more terrified. Half a year is considered a long time pretty much everywhere you go. In New York – it’s an eternity. A week in this city feels like a month, a month like a year. That’s why it’s so difficult to explain the experience that is New York City. To go home and have to answer questions like “Did you have fun?” or “What did you do?” is almost impossible. The only thing you can do is to simply shake your head, sigh and say “How much time do you have?”

This city does something to you. It changes you somehow – makes you feel more alive. I know New Yorkers have a reputation of being rude, obnoxious and plain mean, but I just don’t see it. The people I’ve met here are some of the most life-loving, driven, spontaneous and open-minded individuals I’ve ever had the pleasure to know. When you live in a city that never sleeps (or even naps for that matter), you are forced to keep on your toes. Every night is Saturday night and every day the Fourth of July. So get up, dress your best and show up for life. Talking from experience: with this mentality surrounding you on an everyday basis, it’s hard to stay unaffected.

This summer really did change me. It made me a stronger, happier and less anxious person. I no longer worry about the little things, nor the big ones. I no longer feel the need to control everything that happens around me. And, as crazy as it may sound, New York has turned out to be the one place to finally bring me piece of mind. The truth is, I’ve never felt more relaxed, worry-free or joyful in my entire life.

So, New York, I know we’ve had our ups and downs, but I want you to know one thing - you never seize to amaze me! When I think I know you, that I have you all figured out – you end up proving me dead-wrong. For me you’re not just a city, you’re my friend. When I feel lonely, you embrace me with a beautiful sunset; when I feel bored, you entertain me at The Box and when I feel lost, you show me the way in one of your dear yellow cabs. On an ordinary Sunday, you gave me a dancing brunch and a Gansevoort Pool party. On my first night out you handed me a “Swedish Mafia” and friends for life. And on a dull day at the office, you brought me a Brazilian partner in crime. To finish off the summer, you presented me with the Grand Finale; an earthquake, a hurricane and LMFAO. I guess Simone De Beauvoir was right when she said, “There is something in the New York air that makes sleep useless”.

Thank you, for being the best friend a girl could ever ask for.

Yours always,

Anja

A while ago Julia and I got to attend the Joseph Joseph event at Sur La Table in Soho. After a lot of preparations including making name tags, put together Press Kits, and finding the perfect shade of green paper we were very excited to see it all come together. 

It turned out to be a great success!

/Anja