Evan Elizabeth Harder

And they lived moderately ever after.

It's Complicated

My New Normal

My husband and I are in our mid 20's, recent graduates, newly married and living in the metro area. This is certainly an interesting time to be laying foundations. While we're so incredibly lucky to both have decent (though by no means ideal)jobs and live in a relatively nice area, the turn in the economy has forced us to reevaluate our expectations for the future, dream a little more conservatively and plan a lot more practically. There's certainly no place for starry-eyed youthful optimism these days. The necessary pragmatism of the times is, instead, a real test of character: applying for job after job, accepting the non-use of your degree, scaling down your dreams, learning to value people and heart and integrity instead of a high-profile lifestyle. The stuff this economy is made of has a way of revealing the stuff we're made of.

36 Hawthorne Place, Apt 4u Montclair, NJ 07042