A Thought and a Half | Southern Food & Lifestyle Blog

16 Useful Items for Your First Apartment

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Moving into an apartment can be really exciting. Living on your own is a huge step toward grownup-hood. Most people go into apartment life in college, although some wait until after college. I moved into my first apartment with a roommate my junior year of college, and have lived the apartment life ever since.

If you have the option, living in an apartment in college is an awesome decision. It gives you the chance to learn to live on your own before you’re actually on your own after school. There is a learning curve, and for me, it was better to experience that while still in college, rather than after.

Whether you move into your first apartment in college or after, there are some items that are super useful to have on hand. They make life easier in some way, whether it’s cleaning or cooking for organizing.

16 useful items for your first apartment

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I Like Coffee My Way

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It’s no secret that I’m addicted to coffee. Admittedly I’m not as bad as I used to be, but I still need my cup (or two) of coffee in the morning to start my day. 

I started drinking coffee regularly in my senior year of high school. I’d taste my mom or dad’s coffee concoctions every now and then, but it wasn’t my beverage of choice. When I saw “AP Calculus” listed as my first class of the day, bright and early at 7:35am, I knew I’d need something to kickstart my brain.

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Grad School Semester 1 is Done!

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Today marks the end of my first semester of graduate school! 








My mind is somewhere between, “Oh God that was the longest semester of my life,” and, “Wow…is it really over that quickly?” Some days it felt like I’d been here for years, and other days it felt like I’d just moved in the week before. Crazy how that works, isn’t it?
But through all the projects and assignments and meetings and seminars, I somehow made it out alive and with sanity mostly still in tact (although at times that was arguable). 
Anyway, I’m a bit too exhausted to do a full reflection post on the semester, and I’m saving up my energy for driving back to Pennsylvania on Wednesday (after a quick stop in Blacksburg tonight, of course). I’ll write more on it once I’m back home and have slept and snuggled with my kitty, who I’m told is waiting (im)patiently for me. Although I’m pretty sure all she’s excited about is just another set of hands to pet and scratch her. 
To my dear readers who have left comments on my recent posts and I haven’t responded to them yet… I deeply apologize! Do know that I read your thoughts and I love hearing from all y’all. Final projects just got the better of my time lately. I’ll make it up to y’all soon, promise! 





But for now, time to finish packing and cleaning, and make my way back to PA for the holidays. Safe travels to anyone else traveling this week! 




Kitchen Items Worth the Splurge

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I have a confession: Bed, Bath & Beyond is one of my favorite stores, ever. There’s one super close to my apartment, and I love just browsing through shelves of kitchen gadgets and home-and-bath essentials. Have you seen all the cool stuff they have? That place is a wonderland. 
Anyway… digression… kitchen supplies can be a little finicky sometimes. While some items you can get away with buying cheaper versions, some items are really worth splurging on, because they’re annoying when they break super easily, and/or they last a really long time. After living in apartments for the last few years, I’ve started learning which items to buy cheap, and which to save up for and buy fancy, nicer versions. These are my 5 kitchen items that I think are worth the splurge.

kitchen items worth splurge

{1} Coffee maker – Especially if you are a huge coffee drinker like me! Y’all know I love my Keurig and I will swear by that thing for as long as I drink coffee. There are other great coffee makers that aren’t single-cup brewers. I recommend looking at Cuisinart if that’s what you want. 
{2} Tupperware & storage containers – If you cook and have a lot of leftovers, or cook/bake in bulk, you really want to invest in a good collection of storage containers. I bought a set of Rubbermaid containers at Sam’s before I moved into my apartment in Blacksburg, and they’ve held up really well. My 40-piece set was only $19.99. Definitely a great investment. 
{3} Cooking utensils – These wear out way quicker than you think, so if you cook a lot (or are going to start cooking a lot), I definitely suggest grabbing a good set of utensils: spatulas, large spoons, tongs, etc. My parents graciously gave me their used (but still in great condition) Calphalon set when they replaced their pots and pans. BB&B also has silicone utensils available in all sorts of colors, shapes and sizes.
{4} Stand mixer – I can’t exactly speak for myself on this one yet, but my mom loves her stand mixers and says they are so worth spending a few extra dollars. We had a giant white mixer for the longest time–in fact I remember getting my hair caught in it once when I was really young–and we just replaced it several years ago. When I get to the point of investing in a stand mixer, I’ll be sure to do my research and get a good, sturdy one that will last me for a while.
{5} Measuring cups – I seriously underestimated how useful a good, sturdy set of measuring cups could be. I bought a cheap, $4 set at Target when I moved in, and they snapped and broke within two weeks of me using them. So you can probably guess what my first stocking-stuffer request was this year.

What kitchen & home items do you splurge on the most? 

Living in North Carolina Again: A Homecoming

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Before I begin, I must give props to Gina’s thoughts on living in North Carolina for inspiring this post (whether she knows it or not). Thanks, Gina! 



home north carolina








As I’ve said on here before, North Carolina is my “original” home. My parents were born and raised in the state, although in different regions, and met in college at UNC. I was born close to my dad’s hometown and lived in another town called Kernersville when I was young. We made our first move to metro Atlanta when I was 5 years old. Even though we haven’t lived in North Carolina since the late 90s, my parents’ families are still here, and we visit several times a year. 





My family moved back and forth between metro Atlanta and the Philadelphia suburbs three times. Most of my childhood memories are rooted in metro Atlanta, especially from our second stint there. Even though we’ve lived in Pennsylvania the longest–nine years next July, ew–I’ve always told people that Atlanta is home. We really didn’t think we’d be in Pennsylvania for longer than five years, as we’d never stayed in one place for any longer. And yet, we’re still there. 





Now I’m back in North Carolina for grad school. I was excited to move back because I knew I’d be closer to my grandparents and extended family, not to mention good barbecue. But since I’ve been back, my pride in my “original” home state has blossomed and I feel like I’m falling in love with it all over again. The Piedmont region has so much to offer, from cities and larger towns like Raleigh, Greensboro, and Winston-Salem, beautiful wineries and parks, natural scenery, food festivals, holiday events, traditions, charm, and everything in between. I feel like I could drive around the Triad for hours and never run out of new places and things to explore. Not to mention North Carolina beaches are to die for (not that I’m anywhere close to a beach, but I’m much closer than I was before). 





I used to say that I wanted to go back to Atlanta as soon as possible. My “plan” all throughout undergrad was to finish college and grad school, find a job in Atlanta, and go back. But now that I’ve been back in North Carolina for several months, what’s the rush? The Triad area, and even Charlotte a little farther south, have just as many opportunities for me job wise as Atlanta would. Lately I’ve thought that I’ll stay in this area for a few years after grad school, just to get on my feet, get started in the working world, and then go onward to Atlanta, or maybe even Nashville. 





And who knows, maybe once my parents finish building their lake house down here, I won’t want to be too far away. 





Maybe I don’t have to go back to Atlanta to go home. Maybe I’m already here. I’ve got time to decide. 

Where’s home for you?




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