How ya doin'?

Yup. I only have time to vlog apparently. Excuse the fact that I am too damn lazy to edit anything.

The summer of mail

I have been utilizing the postal service a great deal this summer. But I mean, between my Etsy shop, Ebay, and my Blogger Family, I was bound to do so anyway. Not that I mind really, because I feel like the postal system is already being cut back a lot, which makes me sad, so I feel like every package/letter that I send/receive is helping give purpose to our postal system.  EMAILS BE DAMNED, they are not as wonderful as receiving a handwritten letter in the mail.

Anyway, today I received my Blogger Family shirt, and although I couldn't go to the meet-up in Seattle it still feels nice to be included :)

YAY! New shirt!

Next year's meet-up is going to be in Austin (aka the heart of Texas), and I'll be damned if I don't go.  I'm already planning in my head all of the logistics and whatnot for it, like:

• hopefully by then I'll be working in the Air Force full time so I'll be able to take at least a week worth of leave
• if I'm lucky and I get the job assignment I want in admin, then I'll most likely be stationed in San Antonio, which is adjacent to Austin
• I'll need to put my leave notice in at least 3 months prior (if that's even possible) so that I'll be guaranteed that time off
• by then I'll have a car, so I can help transport the Blogger Family around the city :)
• I'm going to save oodles of money for the trip

And the list goes on.

Today has been a good day.  Aside from receiving my shirt in the mail, my friend Harrison sent me this essay he wrote about how awesome I am.  A while back I joked that he needed to write an essay about my awesomeness, and I was pleasantly surprised when he actually did!  I seriously had a good laugh for about 10 minutes until my dad walked into my room to give me more work to do for his website.  It's all good though, because I'm nearly finished with everything.

Bribing myself with gummy bears and green tea is working well.

Thank you?

I made this collage from pictures I found while Googling "the most American thing ever"

So, whenever "the future" comes up in conversations I always dread it.  But not because I hate talking about the future, no, in fact I love talking about the future.  No, I dread it because I never quite know how to react when people thank me for joining the Air Force.

I'm just like, what? Why are you thanking me?  I didn't find the cure for cancer, I just voluntarily enlisted in the military.... because I needed a way to pay for college.  Also, I wanted to be the awesome of America.  Free speech! Bald eagles! Guns! Gay marriage! Good 'ole Amuricah! (okay, so maybe we don't have the gay marriage thing yet...)

I usually just smile awkwardly and say, "Oh, no biggie..." and then duck my head and quickly exit the vicinity.

Another thing that happens: people congratulate me.  I mean, guys.  Back when I was still going to college and people would ask me what I was doing, the most I would get was an "Oh, that's nice.  I bet you're excited."

Now that I'm doing the Air Force I get a "WOW! Congratulations, that's so awesome!"

Maybe it's because I live in Texas?

Maybe it's because it's adults, instead of my peers that are responding?

Maybe it's because I've underestimated how important my decision was?

I don't know.  The reactions continue to catch me off-guard.  At least I have a tiny shred of social grace to respond with a cordial response in a timely manner.

Now if only the people I used to go to school with would stop freaking out...

Things.

1. Today is my little brother's 4th birthday, but we're not having his party until Monday.  This has caused heaps of confusion because he's too young to understand what's going on and he keeps on thinking that his birthday isn't until he gets his presents.  Why we couldn't have had his party today, I have no idea.  
2. My dad piled a shit-ton of work on me today, and he is notoriously impatient so it stressed me out a lot.  Right when I was about to have a mini-break down because of server issues my sister checked the mail and brought me the lovely package that my blogger friend Lizzie had sent me!  Inside was a kickass summer playlist CD and a sweetawesome card that brightened up my day.  Needless to say, I was inspired to quit my bitching and do some hardcore coding.  Just kidding.  It wasn't hardcore, just tedious.
3. I have discovered that I work faster when I bribe myself with gummy bears.
4. I really need to clean out my room and get things together for a garage sale or something.  I may or may not be a hoarder.
5. The postcard project is doing well, and I'm happy to announce that I have 5 cards completed, and two sketched out and ready to be painted!

Eat more chicken?

Unless you've spent the past few days watching nothing but porn on your computer, you should have noticed all the drama stateside surrounding Chick-fil-a, a popular fast food restaurant.  The entire issue started when the Henson company pulled their Muppet toys from Chick-fil-a's children's meals.  Henson's reasoning for their actions was because the Chick-fil-a chief executive stated that they personally "supported the "traditional family," and "the biblical definition of the family unit.""

And ever since then, things have gone batshit.  From online protests on Facebook, to entire cities voicing their disapproval and threatening to ban the fast food joint, it's become a war.  


To eat, or not to eat fast food chicken, that is the question.


Before this situation, my only qualms with Chick-fil-a were their absurd prices for a meal.  Sorry, but I'm not going to spend $7 on a tiny chicken sandwich, a tiny box of waffle fries, and a sweet tea when I could get twice as much from any other fast-food restaurant for half the price.  I'm a jew.  I also like tacos more than chicken sandwiches.


Now seeing the aftermath of this situation, I think the whole ordeal is a bit ridiculous.  People are ranting that if you buy from Chick-fil-a you are subsequently supporting the discrimination of gays.  A line has been drawn in blood implying that we as a consumer society must choose between tasty chicken fried in peanut oil and an end to discrimination due to sexual orientation.


A lot of people on my Facebook news feed are equating this to when blacks were refused service at commercial places, but has Chick-fil-a ever denied it's services to a LGBT member?  Not that I can recall.  I'm pretty sure they want as much money as they can get.  I mean, after all, THEY ARE A BUSINESS.  Also, Chick-fil-a does not hide the fact that they are a Christian business.  Hell, that's why they don't do business on Sundays. 


While I do not agree with the opinions of the Chief Executive of the company, I also must acknowledge that they are just opinions.  Business owners are allowed to be human too (although sometimes they seem like soul-less monsters), and we must not ignore the fact that they have the same free speech rights that we have.


So, to sum up how I feel?  Regardless of whether or not Chick-fil-a supports gay rights, I'm still not going to buy their food.  The fact that they don't support gay rights just gives me an excuse to tell my friends anytime they want to eat there.  It's my opinion and my choice to not eat their food.  It's your opinion and your choice if you want to eat there.


How do you guys feel about this?

Back on good terms.

So today I had another AF DEP meeting, and we did our usual business of heading out to a local park and doing some sit-ups and push-ups, and then run for a mile and a half.  We did our non-running stuff on the hot pavement. Yeah.  My hands are still burning. The gravel gave me tiny cuts on my hands. Fun stuff.

We have to have 'buddies' when we do our activities, and as per usual I paired up with my friend Skai, an old friend of mine.

I admire her so much because she is the sweetest, most hardworking, and optimistic person that I know.  She's been through a lot the past few years, and despite just graduating high school this year she's already living on her own and supporting herself.  I felt a bad for her because since she's been busy working full time at her job she hasn't had any time to work out or run for the past two weeks, meaning that she didn't do so well for our physical training. It also didn't help that it was a humid 101 degrees outside.

About three minutes into the run she had to stop, and I waited with her and encouraged her to keep going, but after running for a few more minutes she collapsed and fell into some bushes... She refused to go back, so I did my best to keep an eye on her.

One thing that I really like about my DEP group and my recruiter is the fact that it is heavily stressed that we are a family--- we don't leave anyone behind.  Some asshole left his partner behind while I was trying to help Skai, so we both went back to check on him.  He had a leg cramp so I told him to go back and explain the situation to one of the recruiters.  After that, Skai said she was up for running again, but like before, after a few minutes she nearly passed out. Luckily, by that time the recruiter was running by us and he made her stop because she was so out of it.

It sucked having to run without my buddy, but I kept on pushing because at that point I was well behind the others.  I managed to catch up with everyone, and towards the end I wanted to stop running, but then my recruiter came up next to me and encouraged me to push forward.  He said some bullshit about finding my inner peace and focusing my mind, but at that point I just tuned him out and thought about going home and taking a nice long bubble bath.  That was my inner peace, I guess.

Afterwards he gave the entire group a small lecture about staying hydrated, knowing our limits, and staying together.  He called out the asshole that left his partner behind and then congratulated me in front of everyone for not abandoning my partner.  I'm pretty sure I'm on his good side again.  I hope I'm on his good side again.

Even if I'm not, whateves.  Imma go take me a nice, hot, long, bubble bath and listen to Hands Are Clever by Alex Clare  on repeat (I am seriously addicted to that song. I listen to it like 20 times a day) and read some Sherlock fanfiction on my phone.  I deserve it.  My aching muscles deserve it.

Funny things happen when I run.

If there's one thing that I enjoy about all of this running I've been doing lately, it's the opportunity to observe all the quirky things that people do.

For instance, today I went to a nearby neighborhood park and ran the adjacent trail and ran into a myriad of folks.

Aha! A picture of part of the trail that I ran today!

The first person I ran into was a man and his dog.  It was one of those situations where I was trying to calculate when it would be appropriate to make eye contact and move along.  Living in the south, and especially Texas, people do not simply ignore each other.  I was taught at a young age that you always smile and wave at people when they cross your path, even if you don't know them.  It's a shining example of southern hospitality.  I can always tell if someone is from up north or a big city because they tend to be the ones who give me a "WTF, do I know you?" look.

But I digress.  I found the situation a bit funny because as I  could see that the man was trying to calculate the exact same thing.  I could see it on his face, as I'm sure he could see it in mine, but luckily as we got closer (thanks to the velocity of my running) he smiled quickly, said hello, and I did the same.

For some reason, the fact that I was running made it less awkward.

Then a few minutes following that I saw a man and a woman walking.  The man was kind of puny looking, and definitely a backwoods Texan native (anyone that sports a confederate flag shirt automatically is) and the woman was taller than him, and about 5 times my size.  It was a bit comical because as the man saw me approach he immediately ducked behind the woman and walked behind her, a good 50 feet before I actually passed them.  As per usual, I smiled and waved because I was too out of breath to give a proper hello, and went on my merry way.  The woman warmly returned my greeting while the man just looked at me sheepishly.

When I was sure they were out of earshot I had a good chuckle at the silliness of the situation.  You could obviously tell who wore the pants in that relationship.

I passed a handful of snooty "power walking" ladies that looked at me with unwarranted disdain, but whatever.  They were just jealous of my defined calf muscles.

Little encounters like these make running all the more fun.  I enjoy people watching, and now that running doesn't make me want to hack up a lung or fall over from exhaustion, I can do it more often.

10 3/4 Alder with a phoenix core, slightly springy

GUESS WHAT GUYS?

I MADE MY POTTERMORE WAND! (duh, I'm assuming you guys aren't blind.)

But yeah.  The other day I was on Pinterest (DON'T JUDGE ME) looking at Harry Potter stuff when I found this tutorial. At first I was like, NO WAY. NO FREAKING WAY WANDS ARE THAT EASY TO MAKE.

But lo, and behold, they are!

I was a bit nit-picky with mine and I wanted to get it as exact as possible, all the way down to the measurements.  So yes, my wand is EXACTLY 10 3/4 in. AND since I used bamboo it also happens to be slightly springy! Now, if only I could track down a phoenix feather....

Anyway, for all you Harry Potter die-hards out there, MAKE YO WANDZ. Go forth and fulfill your dreams of being the biggest nerd on the planet. But in all seriousness, I'd love to see how your wands turn out, because I like looking at cool pictures.

For all you folks out there who don't like Harry Potter.... Er, I'm sure there are some Hunger Game crafts out there :P

Suck it up

Well, after reading comments from my previous post I feel a bit relieved by the fact that I'm not the only person who has social anxieties.

Anyways, as I'm sure you all have gathered, I've been training for Basic (which I don't have a date for yet) and I'm literally starting at zero.

Throughout my entire life I've avoided all shapes and forms of athletics, resigning myself to being a bookish artist. That decision has obviously come back to kick my ass.

My dad and I recently got a gym membership so that I can build my upper body strength at this meat-head place. No seriously, 95% of the guys in there are extreme meat-heads, and the owner has body building trophies everywhere. My dad asked the guy where I needed to start in order to build my upper body and he directed us to this chart he had on the wall that has a run-down of exercises I needed to do, separated by days.

Oh man. I was mortified. There I was, surrounded by bulging, beefy dudes, who were lifting 150lbs without a sweat, and I couldn't even do 20lbs on most of the equipment. Not to mention, I had no idea what ANY of the equipment was called.

The owner was sympathetic, and told me that with time I'd get better :P

Also, most of the guys in there are pretty nice, and they usually just mind their own business and yell encouraging things to each other like, "GET IT, SON" "DO IT FOR YOU" "YA CAN'T GET ***** WITH THAT" while hard rock blares from the speakers.

Why my dad didn't get a membership somewhere more... I don't know, relaxed (?) I have no idea.

Also, I've added to my running. I now run 1.5 miles in the morning as well as in the evening. That is also kicking my ass. But I suck it up and do it, because what else can I do?

Social Anxieties

For the greater part of my life I've felt hindered by my inability to flourish in social situations. I mean, I've gotten better, but at times I can't help but feel overwhelmed by interacting with others.

It's hard to explain.

I do okay in small groups of people, but when I have to be in large groups, where I know no one, I shut down mentally. I'm very quiet, I usually stick to corners by myself trying to avoid eye contact.

However, I have no issues with speaking in front of large crowds, I mean I hosted a panel at UT Austin and things went smoothly, but for some reason I'm unable to make connections with people.  I feel paralyzed when I'm faced with meeting a new group of people.

Take, for instance, the AF bar-be-cue I had to attend this past Saturday. Out of the 20ish people that were there I only knew the recruiters and my friend Austin (who showed up 10 minutes late) so I just stuck near my family. It's very hard for me to initiate conversation with strangers, so again I felt paralyzed and trapped. My parents were "disappointed" with me and told me that I should have tried to bond with the other recruits, but I don't think they understand the amount of irrational anxiety I have when I comes to meeting people.  I mean, they were clearly already acquainted with each other--- which adds to my anxiety because I am already entering the group as an outsider.

I do better when EVERYONE is on the same level. I feel like it eases the tension.

Also, I hate talking to strangers on the phone. Hate. I can do it, but I always feel unpleasant, and I have to talk myself into making the call in the first place.

Now that I'm writing this out I feel so silly.  I'm a capable individual. I have no issue articulating how I feel to others, but I still find it hard to make that first step when I'm thrust into a big group.

I need to fix this.

Good Publicity

Do you guys know what Toddlers and Tiaras is? No? Well then you need to watch this video in order for this post to make sense.

Yeah. It's child pageantry on cable.

Anyways, a little girl from my town was featured and surprisingly she wasn't as bratty as the other kids that are usually on. Even more surprising was the fact that her mom was normal, and not like most of the moms they feature. They actually made my hometown look good, and not like it was populated by crazies.

The only thing I found funny was the fact that the little girl was obsessed with Beyonce, and being "brown". She even had a reproduction of one of Beyonce's BET award outfits. Don't believe me? Check her facebook.

Too bad I couldn't find any videos on Youtube about it because it just aired yesterday, however I did find this jewel:

My brain is going to explode. Again.

As I type this my parents are discussing whether or not I should apply for early action/decision for college. I'm a little antsy. And excited.Hopefully if all goes as planned I'll know by November 23rd on whether or not I'm accepted. Then if I am indeed accepted I get to start the wonderful process of filling out their Presidential Scholarship form and applying for their blogging team.

Since last year I've been doing all sorts of scholarship things and I'm also antsy about the fact that within next month they'll be announcing the winners and whatnot.

As for my AP Enviro. homework, I've managed to complete part of it! Hooray! Now I just need to finish it. After writing my last post I felt immensely guilty and I just plowed through until I literally almost fell asleep on my laptop. I dreamed of big leaf mahoganies, and of course, Anderson Cooper.

Yesterday I had a meeting with Ashley concerning Yearbook things and we actually ended up getting a lot done. We met again today and pretty much ironed out most of the management issues and what we were going to tackle when it came to meeting our new staff. I start to itch with excitement whenever I realize that WE will be in charge of making something that the rest of our senior class is going to cherish and hold dear once they exit high school. Or at least that's what I imagine they will do when they see how awesome it is.

Anyways, back to the title of my post. I've been filling out scholarship forms like a crazy madwoman, and you can tell. I spend all day in either shorts or sweats, my hair is in a permanent bun atop my head and--- you should have seen my eyebrows yesterday. They were beastly. Luckily I plucked them early this morning so they don't look too awful.

BTW, I can't stand it when guys say that they hate when girls get their eyebrows done. I knew a guy (that I almost dated) who would rant about how pointless it was. Pointless? I asked him if he would ever date a girl with a unibrow, and he responded with a quick "No way!"

Pointless?

Well yeah, I guess it would be pointless to pluck your eyebrows if you never ever wanted to date.

Needless to say I'm glad I never dated him because apparently he has no idea the time and effort (and not to mention pain) that goes into being a girl. Silly boy, girls aren't naturally hairless minxes!

Also, on yet another completely offbeat tangent: I've fallen in love with dryer sheets. Yes, you read right, DRYER SHEETS. According to this informative article on HelloGiggles, it can be used as mouse repellent, a dusting sheet, odor eater for shoes, static guard, and bee repellent.

Recently I've been using them for dusting, and I must say that they actually work better than those silly swifter things (sidenote: only use the "used" dryer sheets for dusting). Pretty much everyone in my family knows how much I completely DESPISE dusting. It's so tedious, especially when you're like me and you have 20 gazillion trinkets that you have to pick up and dust individually. Gah. But by recycling my used dryer sheets I feel motivated by the smugness I acquire by knowing that I am not only cleaning and dusting, but also being GREEN.

Ok. So I should probably stop myself before I continue to ramble on and on and on and--- well you get the idea.

Oh, but before I forget, if you're participating in Christopher's homework assignment I'd like to

give you guys a little motivation.

And I did it all without having to resort to anonymity. If I can do it, so can you! Plus, it's really great for stress relief. Personally I pretended my insults were being directed towards a certain someone that I've become annoyed by as of late.

College Anxiety

click to enlarge. do it to see how ridiculous the distance is.

College.

The idea of moving 975 miles and 15 hours and 46 minutes away is a bit daunting, especially the part about living with a complete stranger. While a little scared I am extremely excited about going somewhere new, where I know no one. Fresh starts are completely wonderful, and I’m looking forward to make the best of the one that faces me next fall.

I’ve been doing a lot of research at the college I’ll be attending and they have 6 different rooming situations ranging from a traditional double room that is included in the comprehensive college fee, to a single deluxe suite that is $4,750 a year. My first year I’m most definitely going to be in a standard room so without question I’m going to have a roommate, and I’m a little apprehensive about this.

What if she hates me?

What if she’s completely annoying?

What if she judges me for my personal tastes?

Of course, I’m not perfect either. I live in a state of organized chaos that irks my OCD stepmom. I always have a clean floor, but my bookshelves are stuffed to the brim and there are even more piles of books everywhere else I can squeeze them. I don’t have any proper area for my art things so they kind of just lay wherever, and my computer desk? Yeah. I don’t even want to talk about that. But I’m clean for the most part. My dirty laundry ends up in its basket, if I drink something or eat something the night before the dishes get put up and cleaned in the morning. I’m not a fan of dusting, so I usually do that a few times a month (gastly! I know.) and my decorations are eclectic/indie.

Needless to say I’m sure a lot of my habits will annoy whomever I end up rooming with. I’m so envious of my friends who are going to the same college and have the opportunity to live with each other, but at the same time I would hate the possibility of conflict.

Out of all of this jumbled mess of nerves that comes with preparing for college the roommate situation is what bothers me the most. If I’m stressed out I can’t seek out solitude and my parent’s house for the weekend, and what if I get sick? I’ve never had to deal with being sick or physically stressed on my own before. I’m good with taking care of others, but if it weren’t for my parents I’d be going to school with fevers and whatnot, completely unaware of why I felt under the weather.

I like planning ahead, or at least I like knowing what to expect. I’m quite aware that this is my inner control freak coming out, but when I read things like this, I get anxious. I feel the need to form a game plan, if you will, so that I won’t be caught off guard.

Like me, I know a few of you guys are in the same boat as me--- preparing for college and whatnot and I feel a little relieved that I won’t necessarily be the only one stressing about this. My friends for the most part are staying local, so they don’t have to worry about things as much.

Anyways, I found this article a little reassuring. However the roommate contract thing seems like it would be a little weird to approach, but helpful in the long run.

What about you higher education veterans? Any advice?

Rain is nice.

source

_{It rained yesterday.}

_{And it was glorious.}

_{When I left on vacation I left behind dead, dry, cruchy grass that was my yard for the tropical wonderland that is Florida. From the moment we hit Louisiana things felt moister than my area of Texas in a long time. I savored the weather, which was actually in double digits.}

_{As soon as I returned home I observed with a little sadness that things were still dry, and very, very brown. My dad, unlike our neighbors, sees no point watering a yard in a middle class neighborhood. It makes sense. Who are we trying to impress? Why waste valuable water, and run up our water bill for that matter, on grass that my dog is using as a toilet? It makes sense. My dad says that the reason it’s averaging 100-105 degrees right now is because the moisture in our soil is currently 5%, as opposed to our usual 10%--- not to mention by this time last summer we actually had a significant amount of rain.}

_{But when it did rain? The sun was beginning to set as dark clouds approached my neighborhood and it started to pour. When I looked outside I expected to see the shade of grey that usually accompanies showers, but instead I was met with an eerily stunning sepia tone. Scientifically I couldn’t help but wonder if the sepia effect was caused by the sickly hue of our grass playing off of the droplets.}

_{It needs to rain more.}

Vacation!

Guys. You have no idea how excited I am. I know, I know most of you are sick of me talking about how I get to go to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, but if you can imagine somewhere that you’ve always wished to go to times 10, you could understand my excitement.

Anyways, we’re driving down there and I’ll be there for about four days(!) and then we’re driving back home. Keep in mind we’re driving from TEXAS to FLORIDA. Luckily for me I live in east Texas, so at least we don’t have to cross the entire state.

I promise to take pictures and upload them ASAP, but until then I probably won’t be blogging too much. I’m bringing my laptop, but I’m not going to use it that much due to the fact that my real life > my online life right now.

I SHALL RETURN!

Subway with Dad

Today was nice. I went to Subway with my dad and had a nice lunch.

As mediocre as that sounds, I look forward to these lunches/outings due to the fact that my dad is forever busy with running his business. Since he's an entrepreneur he works around the clock, and when he's not working, he's usually too tired to do anything but eat and rest. However, he's been like that my entire life, even before he started his own business.

My mom of course was batshit and would think that whenever he was out of town with his welding gig he was cheating. According to my dad, the only mistress he ever had was Work.

So like I said, whenever he makes time for me I feel extremely special. We pretty much just talked more about college and whether or not I wanted to stick with advertising, and about my AP scores which came in.

I made a 3 on my AP US History test and a 4 on my AP English Language and Composition test, meaning that I passed both of them, but only got college credit for English. Ah well, I honestly did the best in my ability on the APUSH test however I didn't feel like my teacher adequately prepared me for it. That being said, at least I didn't fail it! Also, in case your school doesn't do AP, it's pretty much just a wide-range knowledge test over the subject and is scored on a scale of 1-5(being the highest) and you are eligible for college credit if you manage to get a 4 or 5.

Next year I'll be taking 6 AP exams. Wait, did you guys hear that? I think that was my social life evaporating into thin air. Oh well. At least for right now I can just focus on being happy because my tummy is full of a yummy delicious Subway sandwich.

DIYs FTW

I’ve been crafty lately! Yesterday I found this really awesome DIY for how to make a hollow book. Whenever I get excited about something I usually have a “right now” mentality, plus when I get that excited I tend to have a one track mind. Yesterday morning I gathered up all of my supplies and got to work, wanting to finish the book as soon as possible. On the DIY guide it said that it would take upwards to two nights to cut out all the pages, but since I’m also impatient I got in done in less than 2 hours. Did I mention that I was watching Scott Pilgrim vs.

The World while I was working?

Sure, if I was a perfectionist I would have spent more time meticulously cutting out the pages making sure that there weren’t many raggedy edges, but hey I’m not. After I was done cutting out the pages I sanded the edges slightly to make it look a little better. And I kind of like the raggedy edge feel. It took me forever to find a book that I was willing to cut up, but I finally settled on this old withdrawn library book that I rescued a year ago.

The book is about Buddhism, and it came from a tiny library in my dad’s hometown. I’m a bit sad that I sold a lot of my hardcover books a few weeks ago, but I think I might go thrifting for more hardcover books this weekend. -Look at all those pages! It didn’t really take that long to cut out all the pages, but then again I didn’t really do it too neatly. Honestly the thing that was the most time consuming was waiting for all of the glue to dry that’s holding the pages together.

Aaaaand it’s done! I put some patterned paper in the back to make it look prettier. I don’t really know what I’m going to use it for yet… I guess if any burglars come to my house they won’t be able to steal my quarters and gift cards??

Or I could use it to store all of my trinkets and sparkly things! I don’t know. I’ll probably just use it to sneak beef jerky into my AP Economics class next year. It’s not really deep enough to hide anything aside from candy or money. Oh well, at least I finally have one! I’ve always wanted one, but I didn’t want to buy the crappy fake looking wooden ones and I really didn’t feel like paying $15-$45 for one on Etsy (plus shipping?!) because, well, I’m a Frugal Fran. However, if I did have the cash I would probably splurge on this flask shaped one, even though I don’t have a flask :/

The next time I make one I'll probably spend more time on it so it doesn't look so raggedy.

My Wall, and more designs.

I know guys, how have I not posted a picture of all of the wonderful things I have on my wall?! Oh wait... you don't care?

Oh well. Let me be delusional in the fact that you actually do indeed find my wall hangings interesting. A few days ago I had the pleasure of spending time with one of my friends home from college for the summer. Excited about getting another opinion about my designs I whipped out my humongo laptop and showed him the different templates I had made thus far and he was silent for a little while.

I was a little freaked out by the lack of commentary until he looked up at me and said, "Dude. All of your picture placements look like your wall. You know, the one next to your bed?"

WHAT.

I felt a little silly for not noticing this sooner, but at least I know that my design habits are consistent. Sidenote: please don't judge me for the Prom movie poster. I'm a girl.

And now we're at the part of the post where I dump three more template designs on you guys. As per usual, I put some pictures in to help simulate what the book would look like with images.

Yeah. I tried designing some sports templates, but they didn't really turn out the way I wanted them to. And I couldn't even finish one due to the fact that I was so fed up with it. I'm sure Ashley will have no problem whipping up a few for the yearbook :) Ah it's so nice to have a Co-Editor to help design things!

Untitled

In my last post I said that I cut my hair, which prompted some of you to ask for a picture of what it looks like now. Well here you go! Sorry if it’s a bit anti-climactic. I didn’t do anything fancy with it, in fact this is what my hair looks like au-natural with no product/spray. All I did was brush it. If any of my family has noticed, they haven't led onto the fact that they have. Plus, my hair is naturally curly so it's sort of hard to tell that it's any shorter.

Anyways, today was pretty good because I got to hang out with my friend Rebekka. We went to the movies and saw Super 8, which was surprisingly funny. Or perhaps I just have a weird sense of humor. Since going to the movies was pretty spur of the moment, we just barely made it in time before the movie started showing. Of course, all of the seats were taken except for the front row so we had to strain our necks to see the movie. Oh well, if was better than being at home.

The process of leaving my house was ridiculous. As soon as I informed my stepmom and grandma that I was going to leave around 2 they piled a whole bunch of chores on me last minute saying that I needed to do them before I left. So it was 12:45 and I needed to shower, get dressed, clean the kitchen, put up laundry, and sweep all the floors in the house. Yeah.

It started with being asked to clean the kitchen, and I thought, ok, no big deal I can get this done in 20 or so minutes, and then it just spiraled downhill from there. I got it all done though! It’s a good thing I’m pretty low maintenance because just as I finished putting on my eye shadow Rebekka showed up at my house.

When I got home after the movie I had to help my sister bring in an extra table because my step-grandparents were coming over for dinner. I like them. They don’t nag me, or make me feel stupid. Plus, the only biological grandchild they have is my little brother, so they treat me and my sisters really well. Because they were over my grandma was on her best behavior and didn’t bother my sister and I as much as she usually does. It was nice.

As most of you guys stateside are aware, tomorrow is Independence day! I’m going to spend it with my family; we’re doing a traditional BBQ brisket with veggies and watermelon for dessert. Then after that we’re probably going to see my city’s firework show. It’s nothing too extraordinary; just the usual all American day. To everyone else celebrating, have fun and stay safe!

My Mantra

So this poster pretty much sums up what I was trying to verbalize in this post.


I've already printed out a little 8x11 to hang up on my wall, and when I move to college I plan on ordering a big poster. Yes. It will be great.

In other news, I've decided to mentally inhabit a different universe filled with foreign guys, awesome films, and vegan gurus while my grandmother is in town. Delusional? Yes. Effective? Also yes.