Instagram story templates have been trending lately with prompts like "Let's see a picture of you as a kid" and "Teenage you, I bet some of ya'll will skip this." I'm a sucker for this kind of content.
This post was heavily inspired by those Instagram story prompts. The thing is, my teenage years were from 1996 to 2002. And back in those days, we had good old-fashioned disposable cameras.
I'm fortunate to have a decent amount of photos from that time, but thinking about all this reminded me of how many pictures I took in my next phase of life with my digital camera. Remember those? I'm not quite ready to say they are "vintage" yet.
I don't have my digital camera anymore, but I do have my Dell hard drive. This thing looks like it's from the Stone Age. I kept it when I got rid of the desktop computer I used throughout college (and several years after).
I decided the other night that I was going to connect the hard drive to my laptop so I could look at the contents. It was pretty hilarious how many cords and adapters it took to do this. The whole experience made me feel like the TRUE nerd I am.
Anyway, I found a bunch of college assignments, essays, and PowerPoint presentations that are super embarrassing to look at now. Lol. It was a fun ride down memory lane.
But most importantly, I found tons of photos that I took with my digital camera (neatly sorted in folders, thank you very much) from things like my 25th birthday party (somehow 15 years ago) and pictures of my first apartment.
The whole experience was a true delight. Here's what I found:
You know the phrase "Rome wasn't built in a day?" Well, here's proof that it has taken me years and years to define my home decor style and, well .... become a low-key vintage hoarder. Lol.
In all seriousness, though, I'm so glad I snapped this photo. I was proud of my living room and the things I could afford to put in it. I was 23, and this was the first apartment I had moved into without a roommate. I was living it up.
Here's a photo of my apartment bedroom. I remember how excited I was to be able to afford the throw pillows and table lamp from Pier 1.
Here's one of my typical outfits in 2006: layered tank tops, bootcut jeans, a statement necklace, and a belt around the waist. I will never get over this hilarious trend.
We thought we were cool, and we were. I think? 👀
This is where it all started. I didn't know what I was doing, but I wanted to explore a new love for vintage (and the idea of buying and selling) and opened a booth at my favorite flea market.
It was such a FUN experience that eventually led me down the path to selling on Etsy, FB Marketplace, and at local pop-ups.
Many years later, this is a huge part of my life. I love being able to see where all of this started.
Here I am as a fresh-faced 21-year-old using the same computer I saved the hard drive from ... and then posting photos on it on my blog 20 years later.
xoxo, Jacki
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