How To Make a Halloween Costume Without Leaving The House

If you know me or have been reading my blog for awhile, you know that I have dreams of becoming a flight attendant someday. While those plans simmer on the back burner, I can at least pretend to have my dream job because it's Halloween. And everybody knows you can be whatever the f*#% you want to be on Halloween.

But the problem is I'm lazy and I'm indecisive (two qualities that would probably make me a poor flight attendant). I've been hatching costume plans for a month, but haven't loved any of them enough to actually get my act together. I waited until the last minute, and now I'm scrambling to figure out what to be for a neighborhood Halloween party.

Luckily, I possess two qualities that WOULD make me a fantastic flight attendant – I am quick on my feet and I am resourceful. I decide to create a costume out of nothing the day of the party and challenge myself to not spend a dime or leave the house. 

By scrounging around my closet, I pull together a somewhat-convincing retro flight attendant costume. I grab a navy blue pencil skirt and white button down shirt. My small collection of silk scarves includes a red, white and blue number that will help pull the whole look together. I even find my childhood button collection (I collected just about everything when I was a kid, and yes, I saved it all) which contains three sets of airline wing pins. Score!

But I'm missing one key component of any realistically retro flight attendant getup. A pillbox hat. After some Google searching, I learn that a pillbox hat is fairly simple to make. In one tutorial you can even start with a cereal box, but I'm not feeling quite that ambitious. Also, I don't want to sew. I look around the house until I find a hat-shaped sugar container that's almost empty. Thanks, Domino®! I transfer the remaining crystals to a bag and proceed to cut the plastic container in half using a combination of X-ACTO® knife and scissors. Be careful if you do this! I also used a hair dryer to soften the plastic a bit and get those weird "handle" curves out of the structure.

I find one of my husband's old shirts in our Goodwill donation pile and take scissors to that, cutting a strip that will wrap around the outside of the sugar container form.

I locate an old mini glue gun and a huge bag of glue sticks I bought years ago ("These are so cheap! I'm sure I'll use them for something someday!"). Well, that day has come. I fire up the glue gun and secure the shirt fabric to the sugar container form. I glue the bottom edges under the form, and the top edges down to the top. 

Once that's done, I grab a cereal box and cut a round top from the thin cardboard. I glue more shirt fabric to the top of the cereal box circle, tack the edges underneath with more glue and affix that to the top of the hat. It's all coming together now. But it's so plain. Clearly something is missing. 

I raid more drawers and come up with a navy handkerchief that I don't mind sacrificing. Cutting a strip of navy fabric and gluing a nice dark edge around the bottom of the pillbox helps finish the look and makes the hat match my skirt better. Done!

My husband was even happy to play along as my disheveled, weirdo traveler — a creepy passenger on my flight. He wore a wig and his own clothes, and tucked a passport in his pocket to complete the theme.

Globetrotting - Clitheroe, Lancashire, England

Thanks to the magic of the Internet, I often receive orders from around the globe. Wanderlust-afflicted as I am, if an order comes in from a place I am unfamiliar with, I look it up to see where it is located and to learn about its history, what its people do for fun, what its buildings look like, etc.

Today's global exploration takes us to one of the most darling towns I've seen: Clitheroe in Lancashire, England.

According to Wikipedia:

Clitheroe /ˈklɪðɨroʊ/ is a town and civil parish in the Borough of Ribble Valley in Lancashire, England. It is near the Forest of Bowland and is often used as a base for tourists in the area. It has a population of 14,697. The most notable building in the town is Clitheroe Castle, suggested to be one of the smallest Norman keeps in the country. 

The town's earliest existing charter is from 1283! How cool is that?! I'm so excited to have received an order from this little town so I could learn of its existence. And if all goes to plan, perhaps I'll visit someday.

Where in the world is Clitheroe?

Have you been to Clitheroe? If so, leave a comment and let me know what I shouldn't miss when I visit!

Reflections on Running

I know I'm not the first person to blog about running this week. And I won't be the last. But today is special for me because it's my one year "RUNiversary". Exactly one year ago today, I shook off my "I hate running" mentality and began the Couch-to-5K® program.

In all honestly, I didn't think it would stick. I thought I'd try it out, confirm the hatred bred into me by torturous one-mile mandatory runs in high school gym class, and move on with my life. Yet here I am a year later, still pounding the pavement. And you know what? I don't hate it after all. I actually kinda, sorta, almost like it.

So, why in the world did I start running in the first place if I hated it so much? Because last year in 2012, I attended the Boston Marathon with my husband and two of our close friends. I was so moved and inspired by what I saw there that I needed to give it a try and see for myself. We watched the 2012 race from three different locations and took it all in, starting in Brookline, then hopping on the T and watching from mile 25, then finally making our way on foot to the finish line.

It was exciting to watch the elite runners speed past. But then came the families running together. The very young running alongside the very old. A father running and pushing his wheelchair-bound son. The groups of friends running for charity or in memory of a lost loved one. And the crowds – constantly cheering and rooting for complete strangers! I'd never seen anything like it. It was all so heavy and meaningful and overwhelming. Of course, it wasn't all smiles and rainbows; I witnessed tangible pain and sickness and struggle in the incredible record-breaking heat. But through it all, I could feel the energy pulsing through the city that day. And the triumphant expressions on people's faces as they neared the finish line – well, that was the closest I've ever been to witnessing that much undeniable, genuine human happiness at once. Huge smiles. Tears of joy.

I cannot even fathom or begin to process this year's horrific incident. I look at the images and they don't seem real to me. I can't reconcile the scene I witnessed just last year with the scenes on the news. It doesn't add up. Who would ever want to spoil something like this. How could this even be real? It doesn't make any sense. And it probably never will.

It is not lost on me that I was at the finish line last year at almost the exact same time this year's bombs went off. These photographs, taken at the flags directly across from the bleachers, bear a time stamp of 2:42pm – almost exactly one year before the explosions. Almost to the minute. 

We were supposed to go again this year, but I was unable to take a day off work.

Runners are a community built on health, strength, determination and good will. It's a community I am very proud to be a part of. I will keep running and hopefully celebrate many more runiversaries. But now I'm running with a little more purpose. Running for those who lost their lives in Boston on Marathon Monday. For those who were injured. And for those who came so close, but didn't get to cross the finish line that day. I'm running for them.

How to Interview With JetBlue & Not Land Your Dream Job

Exactly one year ago today, I interviewed to become a member of the newest fleet of JetBlue flight attendants. And while it was a nerve-racking experience, it was also the most fun I've ever had at a job interview.

To give you a little background, I've always loved to fly. I get excited about it—borderline giddy—every single time. It's just totally amazing to me that the technology exists to transport hundreds of people through the air together in a giant metal tube. So, when the 8-6 desk job started feeling claustrophobic, I decided to pursue my passion for people, planes and travel. It seemed like the perfect complement to my part-time Lofted Designs jewelry career. I did some research, chatted with some flight attendants I know and started thinking I'd finally found what I want to be when I grow up!

In October of 2011, JetBlue (one of my favorite airlines for many reasons) posted job openings for in-flight crew. I was ready with my resume and applied immediately (applications are usually only accepted for a few days). As it turned out, I was one of 2,700 candidates to apply during this window. In November, I completed an automated phone interview, and after a few weeks I received a call inviting me to Queens, NY (home of JetBlue's corporate offices) for an all-day face-to-face interview on January 19, 2012.

My plane from BOS to JFK

I arrived in New York the night before, and spent a little extra time lingering in T5 at JFK learning about the history and culture of JetBlue in preparation for the big day. Terminal 5, if you haven't been there, is essentially a JetBlue museum featuring cool exhibits and embodying the airline's brand experience. They even have live concerts there. With musicians you've heard of. I'll put it this way: it's the only airport terminal I've ever wanted to hang out in.

From there, I made my way to Queens, checked into the sketchiest hotel I've ever stayed at in my life and did some last minute prep work. I'd already been preparing for this interview for three months, but when it comes to your dream job you can't really be too prepared. My suit was laid out, my nails were manicured and my hair was cut and freshly styled. I felt confident and ready to look and act the part.

Kiki Ward's Essential Guide – definitely helped me prepare!

The next day, I arrived at JetBlue's offices early for fingerprinting. There were about 40 of us interviewing on the same day...people from all walks of life. All ages, races, backgrounds and geographic locations. One thing tied everyone together—it was the friendliest group of people I've ever met. Honestly, I'd say about 80% of those people could have made amazing flight attendants.

After fingerprinting, we all gathered at large round tables in a conference room where a group of JetBlue representatives introduced themselves and presented information about the company and the job. Following the presentation, we each had the opportunity to introduce ourselves and participate in some ice breaker activities.

Next, we all took turns going into various smaller rooms for jumpseat and reach tests. In one room, we were asked to read safety announcements and answer a variety of questions where it was very clear they weren't listening for content but for vocal quality and speech. Toward the end of the day, we were brought into a room in groups of 3-4 candidates and asked one-on-one questions round-robin style:

1. Give a brief overview of your work history, focusing on customer service experience.
2. Talk about a specific time you were faced with unreasonable demands from a customer and how you handled it.
3. Describe a time you had a conflict with a co-worker and how you resolved it.
4. Talk about a time you worked with a team to solve a problem.
5. Describe a stressful situation you've been faced with and how you handled it.

In between each of these segments, there was a LOT of sitting around and waiting. Following advice I'd read in several places, I made an effort during this "down time" to be as outgoing and cordial as possible by introducing myself to the other candidates sitting nearby, engaging with the JetBlue representatives and learning people's names and remembering them. I felt very confident at this point that I was doing everything right.

The interview wrapped up in the early afternoon and we were told we'd be contacted within a week, either by email if we were not selected or by phone if a background check was required to advance to the next step. About a week later, I received the dreaded email: "The competition for this position was strong. And, while your background and experience are very good, we have made the decision to offer the position to another candidate." 

I am eligible to re-apply now (there is a one year waiting period) but for the time being, my dream is temporarily on hold. My full-time desk job pays the bills and my crafty jewelry business Lofted Designs keeps me happy and creatively stimulated. Someday I hope to be one of the friendly faces in the sky—whether for JetBlue or another airline (Virgin America, I've got my eye on you!).

View from above – I always pick a window seat