How to be a Beis-ic Betch

Summer is over which means my summer traveling is over. I feel like I owe this brand a review since I've been talking about it non-stop. Over the summer, I was lucky enough to travel pretty much all summer. The FBI agent watching me through my camera on my cellphone knew this and thus sent me numerous ads about travel gear. Naturally, I came across Shay Mitchell's new travel line since she was coming out with her summer line--and the stars all aligned. I was searching for a plain black weekender type of bag and she had one! Initially, I was hesitant in buying this bag because it was a little pricey for me, luckily I bought it when I did since the price is steadily increasing as the brand is gaining more popularity,                                                                                             I did decide on buying the Dopp Kitt and the Cosmetic case as I was also looking for a new toiletry bag and makeup bag. Something about the aesthetic drew me to this brand. For one, the products are plain but also still stylish and they are functional. Having matching luggage makes someone look a little more put together. When I see someone at the airport who has all matching everything, it makes me a little jealous of them because they look so put together. Unlike me, in recent years who just uses whatever bag suits me at the moment. One thing that annoyed me about the bag was that it came with a missing foot (the little thing on the bottom) so I had to email them. Beis customer service offered to send me a replacement, but I opted out and they sent me a partial refund since I wanted to use the bag ASAP on my weekend trip to Denver. 

This is the youtube video I watched that sold me on the bag. 

The Weekender. I opted for black over the nude colors because I am a mess, therefore I make a mess, constantly. I read reviews online about how big the weekender is and blah, blah, blah. Yes, it is big. The thing is bulky and huge. 9/10 times, you will have to use this as your carry on while flying--and let me tell you something... don't. I brought my weekender to London with me this summer. I flew from Tulsa to Dallas to Little Rock (to meet with my group) then from Little Rock to Dallas to London and then dragged my luggage and weekender from Heathrow to the train station to Paddington station, to the tube to get to Baker Street, down the block, through Regents Park to the university--and let me tell you something, not fun. 

While the bag is functional and cute and roomy--the bag is a bitch to carry. The bag can fit so much stuff, but when packing, I needed to be wary because the bag gets heavy quickly. The straps are uncomfortable and left bruises on my shoulders when I had to carry it by hand through the airport connections. My only saving grace was the trolley sleeve so that when I was walking in pure sweat through the streets of London I could rest the bag on my case. Aside from the trolley sleeve, the shoe compartment on the bottom is nice, too. It's saved me a couple of pounds by placing my shoes in there rather than my case since it weighed 48 pounds when I checked it in at the counter. The only thing that annoyed me about the shoe compartment was that if the compartment wasn't full, the bag is going to sink in, which makes it look frumpy. I should have kept the cardboard that came with it so that it would also sit-up. 

When I came back from London (flying from LR to Dallas since my ticket was from London to LR since I went with school, and then flying back home) I gate checked my weekender so I didn't have to worry about carrying it through DFW when I had to run to my connection. From now on, I think I will only use the weekender as an actual weekend bag when staying somewhere in town, going to a friend's or just a weekend trip. Never will this bag of mine see another airport again. 

But really truly, I love the bag. The bag fits my aesthetic and it is functional when I use it the right way. I think it is just trial and error to see if it works for you. I think these are just my complaints about when I took the bag abroad, other than that, it's an awesome bag. 

The Cosmetic Case. The cosmetic case is a game-changer. I've been looking for a makeup bag that has a handle and that can also fit my makeup brushed. It is an added plus that a mirror is included. What I love about it is the magnetic brush holder. It can easily pop in and out, so there is no constant flipping to get into your makeup bag.  I also love the full-size mirror that the bag comes with so when I'm traveling I don't have to use a little compact mirror or rely on the bad bathroom lighting. I think the idea and execution of this makeup bag are great--I've gone through so many makeup bags because I am so particular. AND it fits so much! 

The only thing I didn't like was that it loses its shape when it is squished in your luggage or bag. I put the case in my weekender while in the airport and the case squished and left creases, but maybe that's because it wasn't filled all the way and it was rather empty. 

The Dopp Kit. The days of using plastic bags as a toiletry bag are over!  I never knew there was an actual term for this bag--it's called a Dopp kit. This bag also has a compartment underneath the bag which comes in handy. I think I just have too many skincare products so it doesn't quite fit everything for me. I do like the concept of the bag, it's similar to the weekender with the wireframe so it opens up all the way. 

The Backpack. I haven't used the backpack yet, but I bought it anyway because I wanted my things to match. I wanted to find an alternative to the weekender for the airport and the backpack also comes with a trolley sleeve. A big plus for me was that the backpack can be used as a personal item and not a carry-on like the weekender. Now I can use my hand-luggage and my backpack together.                                                                                                                                             The backpack looks rather simple. It doesn't have all the crazy zippers and compartments that the backpacks I usually use, which is nice. It has a front pouch, a main pouch and a laptop sleeve with padding. I'm going through this thing where I am only into boring and simplistic things, as I have been told. So while I can't say what I love and hate while using the bag, I am excited to use the bag in the future whether it is for traveling or for school. 

So, that's it. That is my review of my Beis products. I am lucky enough to have bought them pretty early on when they were affordable (to my standards). Every time I go back and check the website, the prices are creepily going up. I think the prices have gone up at least by $20 from the prices that I bought my bags. In general, I think it takes a lot to invest in things like this. I think it's considered a luxury item to have and I question why I am spending my money on these products. But I thought about it and I am spending my money on where I am spending my time. I'm using the items regularly (as of now) so when you break down the cost, it's worth the cost. 

In conclusion, I recommend Beis for people who are looking to invest in new luggage. I think that Shay Mitchell has put a lot of effort into the functionality of these products and they have paid off. 

On a side note: Shay Mitchell liked my Instagram posts when I posted about using the weekender, which is exciting to me, lol. Shay Mitchell, if you're reading this, sponsor me ;-)

Is "Entry-Level" Even Entry-Level Anymore?

Job Search Depression... it's real. I didn't believe it, but it is. 3 weeks on the job hunt and I've come up with nothing (except an offer for Disney English that I declined due to me not wanting to move across the world at the moment).

A delusional me has applied to jobs in NYC, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Dallas--and have yet to receive a word from any type of job that I would actually want. I have become so desperate that I even applied for a live-in nanny position on the Upper East Side, which in retrospect, is highly-unlikely. 

I have done all the things that society has told me to do thus far. Graduate high school, get into college, go to college, get some sort of internship, and graduate college. A person cannot help but think they're not good enough in comparison to the other millions of applicants fighting for the same job you are fighting for. I've come to the conclusion that entry-level positions are no longer entry-level positions. This is obvious of course. All the jobs that I want to apply or have applied for either require or prefer a master's degree. Welp, I'm only here with my puny bachelor's degree. 

So, I've done the unthinkable... I've applied to graduate school. The last thing I think I would do considering I declined my parent's idea of me going to law school. I just submitted my application and my non-refundable application fee about five minutes ago and I've just submitted my transcript. I feel odd writing about these things because I write them into existence and I am terrified of what it will do.

A random statistic I read once said that your resume is pulled out once for every 30 job applications. That’s a 1 in 30 chance. The future sounds pretty fucking bleak if that’s the case. 

So, I applied to 41 jobs on Indeed.com—the most random jobs. Some jobs were jobs that I wanted like editorial assistant positions in NYC and SanFran and the others were cold calling “entry-level” jobs. I can’t even tell you how many more jobs I actually applied to when going through a company website. Let’s just round up the number to 60 to make things easier. 

Out of said 60 jobs, I got calls for an interview from 5 companies. Two teaching abroad jobs in China and Korea, a random sales company in Massachusetts, a special education aide in San Francisco and a writing specialist for a local community college. I did a video interview with one of the teaching abroad jobs, but I don’t think that teaching abroad is right for me. I don’t think I’m brave enough to move to a foreign country and commit for a year. The idea of it sounds lovely—the travel and life experiences it can give you, but when I was actually offered it, the actuality of it was daunting in which I declined. The second job I had an interview with was the community college as a writing specialist. 

My limitations I have faced in the job search so far have led me to question my choice in my undergraduate degree. Who the heck majors in English? While in my undergrad I was posed with all of the questions “what can you do with an English degree?” “Do you want to teach” Blah. Blah. Blah. The truth is, one can do plenty of things with a degree in English, but at the same time, be so limited. Job search depression is real. It is a constant slap in the face of rejection, which hurts. You can’t get a job without experience, you can’t get experience without a job—in other words, you can’t win. 

But don’t pity me! I still have hope, a small silver lining that is. Maybe I have to go back to school to be more marketable with a master's degree. Although, I’m not sure how much more marketable I’ll be with a master's in the program I applied for. Maybe I’ll write a book with the many ideas that skid across my brain and turn myself into a novelist. Or maybe and the most likely of these options, maybe I will become a full-time stay at home daughter.