THE WEEK

What can really be said about this week? Prince died. I’m still in shock and can’t believe it actually happened. It’s so hard to watch the people we look up to, the people who fearlessly push creative boundaries no matter the consequences, leave this Earth.

Without these larger than life personalities, the world feels so bland. And with each passing, it becomes clear that these creative visionaries are human and have ups and downs just like the rest of us — they need people surrounding them who care and can be good, trustworthy friends when times get tough. I don’t know much about Prince’s personal life since he shared so little but I hope he’s at peace.

Thinking back to my one visit to Minneapolis in 2014, I got why he must have loved it so much there. The place was creative, fun and I’ll be honest, cruising on a Pontoon down Lake Minnetonka and visiting First Avenue were the two highlights of my trip. Joey grew up in Minneapolis and I would always laugh at his stories of skateboarding through the parking lot of Paisley Park like it was no big deal but now, I just feel so much sadness, like so many others.

In other news, I’ve had to let go of all expectations of this week because Rocky has also not been feeling well. It’s hard to think of my puppy as being nine now because when I met him, he was a sprightly, excitable three year old. After spending half the day at the vet yesterday and some x-rays, we found out that he hurt his back so I’m on stay-at-home mom duty, typing this post from the floor of our living room next to him to make sure he stays still. Poor little guy.

With Rocky not feeling well, all my project timelines got thrown out but luckily, everyone I work with is awesome and understanding. There’s no sugarcoating things — the last few weeks have been a total rollercoaster. That’s life sometimes and the reality is that not everything is a fun, exciting adventure to be shared on Instagram.

Ah, life. I hope your week went more smoothly than mine! Sending lots of love your way. xo

Photos, from top to bottom: 1. Lowe’s has flamingos! 2. Loving my new office plant from IKEA. 3. Rocky loves the cherry blossoms. 4. Weird statue alert!

THE LINKS

• Remembering 9 of Prince’s most over-the-top, princely moments. My favorite: In 2010, he said, “The internet’s completely over.” Haha!

• Figuring out how much to charge as a freelancer can be tricky but this post breaks it down in easy-to-understand steps.

• Times are changing! The Victoria’s Secret swimwear catalog and line will soon be gone.

• How to rewire your thinking and kick fear in the face!

• Prince, remembered in 11 songs you might not know he wrote.

• Grabr allows you to get anything delivered on demand from anywhere in the world by a trusted traveler that’s heading in your direction.

• Woah! Famous paintings recreated with washi tape.

• How do you define becoming an adult?

• Ha! #feelthekern merchandise is helping raise money for the Bernie Sanders campaign. Gotta appreciate the cleverness here!

• 7 better ways to answer, “What do you do?”

• I love seeing older women not giving into societal pressure and rocking their unique, bold style. So good!

• Before taking on a project for free, ask yourself these 3 questions.