My Current Daydreams

My trip to Rwanda, move to Charleston and launching a new (TBD) brand

God I love a good day dream. That little moment where your eyes soften on a random place and you completely zone off into the sweetest daze. It’s almost like a nap with your eyes open, mind foggy yet clear as day.

1. Moving

Lately, I daydream a lot about moving. Am I the only one? On the plane home from Italy last weekend, I fully convinced myself I was ending my lease in April and relocating to France with the kids. This lead to one hour of Googling international schools and homeschooling, followed by a three-hour reset nap, only to wake up and remember… this is not exactly something you can just do overnight.

Nonetheless, the daydream will continue just as it has for years. I also did a fun ChatGPT prompt exercise:

Knowing everything you know about my life, from relationships to work to my overall aesthetic, what are the top 10 places you would suggest I move to with my kids?

The answers were: Paris, Copenhagen, Tokyo, Austin, and Charleston. That was fun.

Am I really moving? Probably not. But I have been thinking about it more than usual lately.

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I flew home via Norse airlines which is a really amazing budget-ish friendly option for non-stop flights to/from LA to Paris/Rome in Premium Economy. I will 10/10 be flying them again and no this isn’t sponsored. I flew home from my dear friend Janessa’s wedding. I can’t wait to share more on that very soon!

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2. Gorilla Trekking

I’m going on a gorilla trekking trip in October (I’m screaming with excitement here). My boyfriend (still feels weird to say that as a 42 year old, should I say “partner?”) is turning 40 and we’re going to Bisate Reserve for gorilla trekking and then White Sands Zanibar. The packing list for gorilla’s was quite extensive (complete with gaiters, special pants, etc) but luckily we just found out that the hotel offers all of the more technical gear so I’m aiming to keep everything in one carry-on. Here are a few things on my shopping list that I rounded together on the train from Florence to Rome.

Patagonia Women’s Waterproof Jacket, Timberland Waterproof Hiking Boot, Marmot Eco Rain Jacket, Splits Black Leggings with Stirrups, SET Chocolate Brown Leggings, Arcteryx Coelle Jacket, Eterne Half Zip Pullover, Janessa Leone Foldable Hat, RecTech Pants by Outdoor Voices, Patagonia Waterproof Pants, North Face Rain Pants

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3. Other Musings

1. The new Still Here fall campaign really caught my attention. I love the editorial direction of the images and the product looks so strong. 2. This book has been in my cart and I need to order it ASAP. 3. I broke in my new barn jacket on my trip to Italy. I wore it on the flight, in between trains and I’m a huge fan of the color and the pockets. 4. I read this article My First Year Without an iPhone and I may or may not have flirted with the website where you can buy a basic Nokia flip phone but we all know that it’s my profession to make money from posting on social media so this is delusional for me for the time being. However, I found this to be a really interesting read and genuinely loved her take aways toward the bottom of the article.

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4. A New Brand

This daydream probably takes up the most screen time in my brain these days. It’s something I’ve been chewing on for several months and I’ve even began tip toeing towards getting the ball rolling. I had a few trusted friends ask me over to last few weeks “What is next? We’re all waiting!” which has honestly been giving me the extra nudge I need to start to pursue my next steps in my career.

On the 13 hour journey back, I spent a significant amount of time working on a branding deck for a new brand idea I’ve been chewing on. I must admit that it feels pretty damn good to have my wheels finally turning again in that creative direction. It took me quite some time to get my confidence back after I walked away from Wyeth. I’m honestly still very much on the fence about it all. Perhaps I’ll write more about all of this in a new post? The idea of starting a brand from scratch. Where to begin? What my process looks like, etc. Is that something you’d be interested in hearing more about?

Until next time! x JD