Hi, it's me. I am not dead. I know it's been about a month since you've heard from me but I had some inspiration strike for a post so here I am back in the blog saddle. I came up with the idea for this post for two reasons. First, I very recently paid of my student loan (WOO HOO! - which was a 15 year loan that I paid off five years early #getthatdirtoffyashoulda) and it had me remembering how I felt in the spring of 2008, newly graduated and not sure about what the future held for me except that I'd likely be working behind a computer screen in a dimly lit cubicle. Ten years later - while my offices have changed a few times over the years - I still do. Secondly, If you are like me, you might need that little bit of joy from small things around you to get you through the mundane workday. These little pieces of cheer really do bring me happiness so I wanted to share these fifteen things. They would all also make AWESOME new graduate gifts! The best part is that almost all of these items are under $15.

1. I have this exact gold framed calendar and honestly look forward to creating new lettering for each month and mapping out my days. I literally look up different handwriting styles and play around with them each month. If you have to look at it every day - should be cute right? It's also eco-friendly since you reuse it instead of throwing away calendar paper.

2. Fun pens. Enough said.

3. This unicorn head pen holder is super cute - the exact one I have is a gold baby deer head but very similar!

4. I have gold paper clips that get little gold bits everywhere so I wouldn't suggest them but these little flamingo ones are precious and cheap! Also come in pineapple.

5. A pretty coaster is a great way to save your desk from rings and bring some cheer. I have one that says "Do Your Best."

6. A cheeky little notepad.

7. I have this exact mouse pad in gold marble. Can't beat it for the price!

8. I also have this exact trinket dish that holds my cute paper clips but this little turtle one is also very cute!

9. A chic stapler.

10. I have an agate box on my desk that I use to hold mints, tea packets, cough drops, and the like.

11. I have been eyeing this acrylic tissue box holder for some time.

12. A cheeky little mug to match your cheeky little notepad.

13. I have these little animal head pins to tack up my boring schedules. My boss laughs and calls them my "kills" as if I were a tiny animal hunter.

14. Plants are an easy way to freshen up any area. This one is a parlor palm, I have one home and it's very hard to kill.

15. Some personal photos! I used Frambridge to frame one of my favorite Instagram photos and hung it up in my cube for smiles. Under $40!

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