DIY Wooden Square Block Craft - Delta Gamma

I have always been a crafty person. And with such gifts, comes a lot of responsibility. Such as... crafting for others... For me at least, crafting for others is an enjoyable activity. I just finished a project for my cousin who is in Delta Gamma. The Anchor is DG's symbol and stands for Hope.

This is a great project to do with sorority letters, or with a monogram! Or just use your initials and a symbol in the middle. Like a cross, a heart. Anything!

 

 

First you're going to need three pieces of wood. Put down a base coat and keep painting on all sides until you get your desired colors. I love pink and I had originally painted these pink; however, I ran out and went with a salmon-pink instead that i already had three bottles of... I love how it came out! Pink, Bronze, and Blue are DG's colors so this worked out great! I didn't need any materials except for the wooden squares. You can scavenger up pretty much anything for this project. You can add beads, ribbons, tissue paper flowers... Anyway...

The anchor was the hardest. But I just looked at a picture online and kept at it until I got it right. If you want you can get a stencil but stencils always seems more difficult than free hand.

After writing the D and G I outlined in blue and then added glitter!

Then I put three gems in four of the corners. And two on the anchor.

And there you have it. A perfect, easy, and interchangeable gift! Or make one for yourself! As a sorority girl myself, I have plenty of crafts. My entire wall and two shelves hold my crafts. And then the rest of my apartment holds the rest...

Anyway, stock up on wooden squares before the holidays and make some for your own cousins!

DIY Paper Lanterns

My apartment is looking a little dreary, mostly because I moved in a couple months ago and during the summer I have had trouble getting motivated to decorate! Anyway, I wanted to make some cute lanterns to hang in the archway between the living room and dining room.

First I chose a color scheme that I liked. Choosing a color scheme would have been much easier if I had gone to the craft store first. But I wanted to get into my project right away, and I made due with what I had. Which ended up perfect! I wanted all my lanterns to have a similar look without being the same colors. I chose green and grays for the outside paper. And pinks, blues, and orange patterns for the inside.
 

I would recommend using paper from a pack. It's easy to mix and match and they all have a common theme that will allow the colors to flow. Otherwise you need to be cognizant of your colors or you might get a messy look. After you have your papers, cut off any end pieces you have.

Then start to cut one inch or 1/2 inch flaps across the paper. Make sure to cut vertically on your design. It does not matter the size of your flaps as long as they are pretty even. Leave about an inch at the top without any cuts. You do not want twenty strips just a paper with a bunch of flaps.

Oliver wanted to help too.

Next tape the bottom of the paper together. You could skip this step if you folded the paper in half and then begun to cut strips; however, I did not want to have a crease in my lantern.

Choose the lantern you want on the outside. Then make a circle with your paper and hot glue the top of one flap to the top of the other flap on both sides. You want their to be a slit between the sides you are gluing together. You will then make a circle!

Take the paper that you want on the inside of the lantern. Make a circle and glue one flap on top of the other flap. You want this one to be smaller so you are gluing flaps together without a slit. You could also cut off one slit completely and just attach the tops like you did on the outside paper.

Slide the smaller paper inside the larger paper.

Push both sides together to make them plump up. You can get them to stay by attaching strings on opposite sides of the lantern to create the correct height and bounce.

Add some ribbon on the top to hang and some ribbon along the top and bottom, and you have a beautiful paper lantern!

Still in the process of hanging and making lanterns. I'll be sure to post my finished project!

Dancing in the Rain

Dancing in the rain. For some this humble rain dance is a poor excuse to wear a white T-shirt and show off your ta-ta's to your overly attractive neighbors, for others it is a spiritual awakening of the senses. Yeah, let's go with the second one. For some oddly primitive reason I love the rain. Rain is the blood of the earth. It flows over mountain tops, streams, and valleys. Rain seeps its way through nature leaving only an abundance of life in its footsteps. In some distant life I was a Native American Princess. Nature is so incredibly beautiful to me. There is nothing I love more than being close to the earth. Perhaps it is the Taurus within me but I love Nature. The Beach. The Forest. The Mountains. I love the beauty that is this earth.

Rain is a constant reminder that we are delicate creatures. Rain is a constant reminder that there is something greater than the individual. Rain is a constant reminder of something greater than human-consciousness. Rain is beautiful. Rain is peaceful. Rain is life.

This, and an abundance of other reasons, is why I love Jersey Summer. I love hearing the comforting trickle of rain at my window. I love hearing the sky's thunderous cry. And I love spinning, running, dancing - lifting my hands up to the celestial sphere. The feeling of warm summer rain on my cheeks, soaking my shirt, my sskin, my feet. I love this constant reminder of the beauty of the earth, and the constant flow of time that is life.

Summer Solstice has failed me again

July 20th, 2013. One more day until Summer. Well, sorry Gregorian Calendar but I do not think that this summer Solstice has been all too accurate. Summer is what you make of it. For a tired-over-worked college student, summer starts as soon as that last final is turned in and done. But for me, I have not been so lucky. I was painfully sick the last couple months of the semester and as a result, I still have five incompletes. Five. Incompletes. So no, despite spending day after day in the library as the rest of my friends travel the world, get drunk, and go to the beach - my summer has not begun. My summer will not begin until I gather my inner strength, go to the library, and actually work my butt off. A feat that is terrible difficult for someone like me who has spent the entirety of her academic career floating on by.

Well, reactivating this blog is my attempt at gaining my inner strength and motivation. It is also at the nagging of my mother who participates in the "Writers Way" program in which she writes for a little bit each day to find her inner motivation, (it's a variety of prompts though I do not know all the specifics).

Well, I hope everyone else is enjoying their summer and that I can find my inner motivation and allow my summer to start.

Once a Freshman, Always a Freshman?

Here I am: 12:10. Sitting on my newly made college bed, ecstatic for my next year of school. I have been in training all week, and finally I have been able to relax with an unpacked room. It's beautiful. A little bit bigger than last year, but in all honestly -- pretty small. My things are neat (other than wall decorations) but there's still not enough room despite the bigger room.

I am so excited for school to start. I want the freshman to move in already, so I can introduce myself and get them ready for a spectacular year. I have Hall President. It is my job to spearhead the Hall Government and ensure that our Residence Hall is an efficient community. I am not an RA, as my job is to include the residents into the Hall Government.

Freshman Halls are known for being rowdy, my only hope is that I can separate myself as a sophomore resident but not seen as different because I am Hall President. The bottom line: I'm a resident. I don't want another freshman year, but I want to be equal too.

I am sure it'll be successful, but hopefully I can focus on my academics despite my strenuous (but rewarding) extracurricular! I'm already at a time crunch and finding conflicts left and right!

Read The Observer's Top 100 Novels of All Time

As a bit of a literary fanatic, let's see how far I have come to reading the Top 100 Novels of All Time. I have decided I liked this list better because it included novels not of the 21st and 20th century. Let's get started, shall we?

Read The Observer's Top 100 Novels of All Time

1. Don Quizote Miguel De Cervantes
2. Pilgrim's Progress John Bunyan
3. Robinson Crusoe Daniel Defoe   
1. It was an adolescent version, but it definitely counts!
4. Gulliver's Travels Jonathan Swift 
5. Tom Jones Henry Fielding 
6. Clarissa Samuel Richardson
7. Tristram Shandy Laurence Sterne 
8. Dangerous Liaisons Pierre Choderlos De Laclos 
9. Emma Jane Austen
1. Saw the play, loved the play.
10. Frankenstein Mary Shelley 
11. Nightmare Abbey Thomas Love Peacock
12. The Black Sheep Honore De Balzac
13. The Charterhouse of Parma Stendhal 
14. The Count of Monte Cristo Alexandre Dumas  
15. Sybil Benjamin Disraeli 
16. David Copperfield Charles Dickens 
17. Wuthering Heights Emily Bronte 
18. Jane Eyre Charlotte Bronte 
1. Technically I never got through the last 100 pages, need to work on that.
19. Vanity Fair William Makepeace Thackeray
20. The Scarlet Letter Nathaniel Hawthorne 
1.  I would have enjoyed it more if I had not read it in school
21. Moby-Dick Herman Melville 
22. Madame Bovary Gustave Flaubert 
23. The Woman in White Wilkie Collins 
24. Alice's Adventures In Wonderland Lewis Carroll 
1. Great book but a disturbing childhood favorite.
   
25. Little Women Louisa M. Alcott 
1.  Beautiful on so many levels, I loved this novel!
   
26. The Way We Live Now Anthony Trollope 
27. Anna Karenina Leo Tolstoy  
28. Daniel Deronda George Eliot  
29. The Brothers Karamazov Fyodor Dostoevsky 
30. The Portrait of a Lady Henry James 
31. Huckleberry Finn Mark Twain  
32. Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde Robert Louis Stevenson 
33. Three Men in a Boat Jerome K. Jerome  
34. The Picture of Dorian Gray Oscar Wilde 
35. The Diary of a Nobody George Grossmith 
36. Jude the Obscure Thomas Hardy 
37. The Riddle of the Sands Erskine Childers 
38. The Call of the Wild Jack London 
39. Nostromo Joseph Conrad 
40. The Wind in the Willows Kenneth Grahame  
41. In Search of Lost Time Marcel Proust 
42. The Rainbow D. H. Lawrence 
43. The Good Soldier Ford Madox Ford 
44. The Thirty-Nine Steps John Buchan 
45. Ulysses James Joyce 
46. Mrs Dalloway Virginia Woolf 
47. A Passage to India E. M. Forster 
48. The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald 
49. The Trial Franz Kafka 
50. Men Without Women Ernest Hemingway  
51. Journey to the End of the Night Louis-Ferdinand Celine  
52. As I Lay Dying William Faulkner 
53. Brave New World Aldous Huxley 
54. Scoop Evelyn Waugh 
55. USA John Dos Passos 
56. The Big Sleep Raymond Chandler 
57. The Pursuit Of Love Nancy Mitford   
58. The Plague Albert Camus 
    
59.  Nineteen Eighty-Four George Orwell 
60. Malone Dies Samuel Beckett 
61. Catcher in the Rye J.D. Salinger  
62. Wise Blood Flannery O'Connor  
63. Charlotte's Web E. B. White  
64. The Lord Of The Rings J. R. R. Tolkien 
65. Lucky Jim Kingsley Amis 
66. Lord of the Flies William Golding 
1. Terribly sexist book, I have read it (unfortunately).
   
67. The Quiet American Graham Greene 
68. On the Road Jack Kerouac 
69. Lolita Vladimir Nabokov  
70. The Tin Drum Gunter Grass 
71. Things Fall Apart Chinua Achebe 
72. The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie Muriel Spark 
73. To Kill A Mockingbird Harper Lee 
74. Catch-22 Joseph Heller 
75. Herzog Saul Bellow 
76. One Hundred Years of Solitude Gabriel Garcia Marquez 
77. Mrs Palfrey at the Claremont Elizabeth Taylor 
78. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy John Le Carre 
79. Song of Solomon Toni Morrison  
80. Bottle Factory Outing Beryl Bainbridge 
81. The Executioner's Song Norman Mailer  
82. If on a Winter's Night a Traveller Italo Calvino 
83. A Bend in the River V. S. Naipaul 
84. Waiting for the Barbarians J.M. Coetzee 
85. Housekeeping Marilynne Robinson 
86. Lanark Alasdair Gray 
87. The New York Trilogy Paul Auster  
88. The BFG Roald Dahl 
89. The Periodic Table Primo Levi 
90. Money Martin Amis 
91. An Artist of the Floating World Kazuo Ishiguro  
92. Oscar And Lucinda Peter Carey 
93. The Book of Laughter and Forgetting Milan Kundera 
94. Haroun and the Sea af Stories Salman Rushdie
95.  La Confidential James Ellroy 
96. Wise Children Angela Carter 
97. Atonement Ian McEwan  
98. Northern Lights Philip Pullman 
99. American Pastoral Philip Roth 
100. Austerlitz W. G. Sebald 

I thought I was a lot more versed in literature, but this is only one list of "top novels"!

Get My Beauty License

Funny story: My mother has never been interested in makeup, fashion, or hair. While all the other littler girls had fabulous fashionista mom's shopping at Limited Too, we were shopping at Target -- and the stuff never was cute (no offense to my mother, her fashion sense has always been fine, just not the vogue reader). She claims it's because her mom was beautiful and loved fashion and makeup. She says that it was a bit of silent rebellion for her. That and before conditioner there was nothing my mom could do to tame her curls but keep them afro short. Anyway, my silent rebellion (though I had a real rebellion too) was through fashion. I have always adored everything fashion and hair related. However, since both fashion and hair are more difficult to maintain (I can barely afford to get my hair cut and died once a year, not to mention every six weeks. Let alone Jimmy Choos, a Birkin Bag, or Dolce & Gabbana sunglasses) I have turned to make-up. Although every so often I splurge at Sephora and pow through my pay check, I feel that I am able to prim the one thing I have the most control over: my face. Let's face it, I do not have the patience to do my hair the exact way I want it (straight or completely un-frizzy) every day, or even the stamina to work out twice a day and get that banging bod. So, my face: that's my pallet and that's what I am good at.

Anyway, I am naturally great with makeup (funny because my mother doesn't exactly know the difference between an eye pencil and a bro pencil -- there's not much of a difference, but still). I do it for myself all the time, my friends ask me to do it all the time, even my mom asks me to do it once in a blue moon. So I'm good at it. But I'm not good enough at it. I want to know the best products to use, the science of it, and learn more skills. I want a license. Plus, I think it would make excellent college cash. The problem: It's expensive and time consuming.

Wish me luck!

P.S. Enough with bashing my mother, I love her to death and am going to miss her when I go back to school (tomorrow)!

Visit all 194 Countries

A few months ago the UN declared South Sudan a sovereign nation, and with that I am yet another country away to reaching my goal of: visiting all 194 countries. I realize this goal is more of for show in tell, but I really want to travel the world. From a young age it has always excited me.

Today, as we were eating frozen yogurt, my mom was recalling our visit to Paris twelve years ago. She said that I loved to talk to people, anyone. She said I would walk up to random people in the street, say "bonjour" open up my phrase book in order to begin a full fledged conversation with them. She is right, I love people. I love talking to people. I love learning about people. And thus, I want to see people from all 194 countries (obviously there are many people that should have countries, but do not, though that's another issue entirely). Anyway, I would like to mention that my mother lost my favorite French phrase book on the top of the Eiffel tower twelve years ago. Part of me has never forgiven her, if you find it I will be forever grateful.

As far as the countries I have been to, I have been to twenty-three. I know it's twenty-three but I'm sure i have left some out:

Countries Traveled

1. United States
2. The Bahamas
3. Virgin Islands
4. England
5. France
6. Mexico
7. Spain
8. Italy
9. The Netherlands
10. Greece
11. Germany
12. Ireland
13. China
14. Japan
15. Israel
16. Jamaica
17. Panama
18. Costa Rica
19. Nicaragua
20. Guatemala
21. Taiwan
22. Vietnam

P.S. I know there are more, and not all of these are in the 194. I'll add more when I think of them! Oh, and do the Palestinian Territories count?!

Cinnamon's Bucket List

Inspired by Alice's Bucket List, and realizing that I have not been posting as much as I should, I have decided to publicize and (hopefully) keep track of my own life goals. If you did not know already, I have a very addictive personality. When I think of something I want to do, I have to do it -- no matter what. I then obsess over this idea, for a while, but this idea often disappears for a while. It's kind of like this: I start things but don't always finish. Hopefully this bucket list can keep track of the goals I have started, and inspire me to finish them.

I am going to keep a master list of all the items in my bucket list, here for now. When I add something new, I'll create a new post about the new item in my bucket list. Off we go!

CINNAMON'S BUCKET LIST

 Visit All 194 Countries
Get My Beauty License 
Marry Someone I Am In Love With
Become Fluent in Hebrew
Climb Mount Everest
Go Swimming with Sharks
Learn How to Scuba Dive
Finish my College Degree(s)
Join The Sorority Best for Me
Go Sky Diving
Find A Time-capsule
Ride a Motorcycle
Go Skinny Dipping (Modestly, if possible)
Have a Garden Full of Flowers
Be in a Film
Go on a Safari
Ride First Class
Experience Weightlessness
Sell My Own Professional Painting 
Learn to Belly Dance
Learn to Drive Stick Shift
Read The Observer's Top 100 Novels of All Time
Watch the Ball Drop at Midnight in NYC
See IMDB's Top 100 Movies of All Time

Friends Come and Go

As time goes on you realize a thing or two about friendship. For one, friends grow apart. As people move on to different places in their life, the likelihood of one spending time with a friend either increases or decreases. And for people like me who are not good at keeping in touch with people, time spent often decreases.

It's a given that I won't keep in touch with all my friends back home who are living 3000 miles away, but not keeping in touch with friends at school is pathetic. For example, my absolute best friend from last semester (we used to be attached at the hip) and I never talk. She begged me to take a class with her and while I am so glad I took the class, we never talk. She is so much more interested in talking to her new friends in the class than catching up or hanging out. And of course, I get that. But it's kind of annoying how I feel like I've been trying to make an effort to reach out and talk to her and that it hasn't been reciprocated.

Last semester she spent every weekend in my dorm hanging out with me, this weekend she spends a lot of time here too -- but with her other friends. It's not as if she can't have friends, or that she has to hang out with me (I didn't ask her to come to my dorm and go out or anything) but she could have at least said "hi." But rather, she calls me in her intoxicated state begging me to go down to her friends room on the second floor and find her keys and wallet that she lost. To which I annoyingly obliged (I was studying) and the door was of course locked. I don't mind doing favors for her, just that I feel like she only talks to me when she needs something. I think that she legitimately cares about her friendship but we're drifting apart and I feel like this always happens to me. I always drift. I constantly drift.

We were best friends last semester, now we're barely friends. I'd like to think that I could call her if I ever had a problem, but I feel like I barely know her enough to do that. Plus, that's the place for a best friend. A title that we don't carry for each other anymore.

Sometimes I wonder why people drift apart. Sure, people grow up. People don't spend as much time with each other. But if you legitimately cared about each other in the first place, wouldn't you be the first to call and catch up?

Following Fads Has Never Been So Fun

Once upon a time. I despised twitter. I didn't understand why people wanted to know when Kim Kardashian was taking a dump or when Miley Cyrus was getting her hair done. Needless to say, I was wrong. Twitter is amazing. No. Beyond amazing. Now I can talk about all the insignificant things I feel like posting on Facebook... on twitter. Rather than having to find a friend who will put up with my annoying tangents, or going on my blog and posting for hours, or even posting on my Facebook where nobody cares. There's twitter.

And, I can actually follow politicians. Yes, that's right. I got twitter to follow politician, not to hear about the Kardashian's dumps. (Seriously. I'm so sick of them - and glad I left California). I get to hear about all the interesting things happening with AIPAC, my congress people, and even Obama Singing! Plus, I follow the Queen of England. Obviously she doesn't follow me, she doesn't follow anyone. But I get to hear about Pippa... and I am getting way too excited about everything.

Anyway. That and stumbleupon were the two recent fads that I refused to follow, and now that I've hopped on the bandwagon -- I'm obsessed. Only, I hope Twitter won't turn into a Tumblr disaster - I was so obsessed with Tumblr once upon a time, and now mine is as deserted as the Arctic.

What are the fads that you're (surprisingly) in love with?

What's Your Color?

Let me just say, I had one of the best weekends ever. I spent it up in the wilderness below the trees, and it was beyond gorgeous and fun. As part of a Leadership class that I am taking this semester, I went on a retreat. It was a bonding experience for all thirty-eight of us.

My favorite part of the retreat was probably the "Colors." We took a quiz that identified which colors we were. And I was pleasantly surprised. Generally I have been identified as a "Blue." But this time I thought I'd end up "Gold." Rather, I got what I generally get - "Orange."

Now let's identify the colors

BLUE: Intuned with emotions and feelings, intuitive, caring, optimistic, good communicator, motivational, outgoing, dramatic, passionate, fun, talkative, confident.

ORANGE: Go getter, charasmatic, spontaneous, playful, fun, here and now, risk taker, completive, action oriented, resilient, challenges, enjoys outdoors, multitasker.

GOLD: Respects rules, faithful, prepared, efficient, dependability, family oriented, practical, organized, timely, orderly, punctual, schickler.

GREEN: Accurate, careful, change-oriented, thorough, inventive, persistent, un-bias, enjoys quiet and being along, logical, inventive.

Now looking at these main characteristics, you can probably figure out which category you fit in. But you might be pleasantly surprised. For me at least, I find that I am such a spectrum of colors. For example, I am a total Orange in that I am confident, fun, adventurous, and loud buuuttt, emotion is such a huge part of my life. Also, I am hyper-organized and on top of things which is a huge aspect of gold. Lastly, I ask questions like crazy (which is green). My friends always make fun of me for asking so many questions about everything and their lives. I never grew out of my "why" stage, just figured out how to ask questions that beat around the "why" bush.

So, what color are you?

XOXO,
Cinnamongirl

Up and At 'Em

Everyone always tells you that you have so much time in college. This is a lie. It generally applies to the people who socialize, party, sleep, eat, go to class, and get involved in a couple or organization. But this is not the case for me. Rather I find myself running around campus all day, only to get back with enough time to eat, shower, and sleep - barely. And the said part is that the semester has yet to begin and I still do not have enough time to breathe.

But I guess you can say that I'm one of those people that feed on being busy. But if there is one thing this overachiever cannot stand, is lazy people - or people that just don't care. For that reason I have found myself slowly distancing myself from people who are not as up and at 'em as I am. And for whatever reason, that is the case - and I have lowered my vast list of friends to maybe a couple people that I care about greatly.

I love college I really do. And as part of the Spring semester I am hoping that I can continue to express myself on this not so active blog. Thanks for listening as I vent.

I'm trying to think of something clever and witty to say, but then I remember that I am not clever or witty. All I am is too pale for my own good. Which reminds me that last night as my friends and I were getting ready for the usual pre-class festivities, I piled on my bronzer and stood for photos. But rather get tan on my visit to Florida, I got whiter. And my photos can be identified by the white ghost. An Oreo. Because anyone who stands next to me looks black.

Speaking of sandwiches... I'm hungry.

Until next time,
XOXO Cinnamon Girl!

Graceful and Timely, as Always!

Well. College is finally here. And rather than keeping my blog updated during the most important changing moments of my life, I have neglected to post once since August. Whoops. Anyways, things are about to change. Basically: I love college! It's so fun! I'm already getting involved with organizations and I've met so many people, I absolutely love it!

But it's the bad, klutzy things that happen to me that are most interesting. Such as my morning.

12:47 - I wake up. My next class is 20 minutes away because I have to take a bus across campus. It's a huge exam. It started at 12. Whoops. So, I run out of my dorm - freaking out - wearing my PJ's and head over to my class.
12:58 - I rush into my class, vigorously apologizing and begging to take what I can of the exam in the 22 minutes left. My professor is so sweet and let's me take the exam, he even allows me some extra time.
1:27 - I make my graceful exit, falling down the stairs.

Let me give you some imagery:

Whoops!

I'm convinced that this sort of thing happens to everyone eventually... Has it happened to you?

Anyway, I'm psyched to keep you updated with my adventures in college!
Oh, and I love Rachel "Mary Poppins" Lewis! Happy October, it's cold here! Brrrr!

Didn't Immaturity and Drama End in Highschool?

They say that if someone bothers you and you take time out of your day to fuss about it, it isn't worth your time. Well, this is definitely not worth my time. But I think that it's funny so I figured I'd tell the world. I really don't "hate" this girl, I dislike her and she occasionally gets on my nerves. But "hate" is a wasted emotion, and I honestly don't care enough about her to waste so much energy on her. So I'll just blog about the hilarity of the situation.

So, I got to Leadership Orientation. And I liked everyone there, except there was this one girl that I got a weird vibe from. (I can kind of read people, but that's beside the point and makes for a different story). You know how there are those people that you immediately don't think you're going to like, either because your similar in one aspect or something about them just sort of bothers you? Well she was definitely one of those. But, hey. I don't dislike anyone and I give people the benefit of the doubt. So I let it slide.

Fast forward a day. She sort of weaseled her way into our group, but hey - I got to know her a bit and she seemed nice enough. It was only after I became friends with her that things really got to heat up.

So, FYI: I say a lot of stupid things, but I'm actually an intelligent person. However, she kind of took some of her remarks a little too far. But she seemed legitimately sorry for the rude things she said. So, whatever - it really didn't bother me. But things got worse and her true colors showed. It started out with just mocking me when just the girls were in my room. It got annoying and I told them to lay off. So I finally decided to take a shower and leave the two obnoxious girls.

When I got into the bathroom, the curtains to the shower were closed and I got a sort of ghostly vibe. "Hello," nobody answered. I opened the curtain, nobody was there. So I chose the stall a few down. Needless to say I was already a little freaked out, so when someone opened my curtain as a joke. I shrieked. Hey, it was a little scary in that bathroom!

One prank. That's a joke. No harm in that.

Then they flushed the toilet, which left a cold shiver down my spine. But that's still a joke.

I guess you could say that when the girl threw a cookie into my shower stall, I was unerved. A cookie. Yes. No not like "she threw cookies" as another way to say "spewed chunks." No. She threw a cookie into my shower stall. Now let's analyze this for a moment.

1. Who throws cookies into the shower?
2. It was my freaking cookie!

By this time I was getting pissed of. Especially since I had calmly said, "lay off," after the toilet flushing ordeal. Then it happened again. By this time I was already done with my shower so I just took a few minutes to cool off.

I then calmly walked into my room, where all the girls were to see the girl laughing her head off. Real mature. At this point I had two options.

1. Confront her: Which I normally would have done. I just didn't want to risk bitching her out or crying, what? I'm an emotional creature!
2. Calmly walk out of the room.

Needless to say, I changed, grabbed my things, and calmly left. This was college, and I certainly was not about to get involved in petty drama and pranks.

The Ultimate College Vacation

I guess you could call it vacation, or laziness - but I haven't had a chance to post the past two weeks on account of my amazing vacation. But don't you worry, I'm here to tell you all about it.

Leadership Orientation
Two weeks ago I packed my bags, worried that I would make a terrible impression and make no friends at orientation. To my surprise, I had the time of my life and made so many friends that I can't wait to keep in touch with at school in the fall.

I flew into the airport all by myself and checked into a hotel, all by myself. I then had a delish burger as room service all by myself, and slept in a king sized bed - all by myself. Then I took public transit to my Leadership Program at my University - all myself.

The program was full of ice breakers, ropes course, leadership sessions, meeting the deans, and even a "Top Chep" competition. Needless to say it was amazing, I'll tell you about the competition and drama later this week.

Bottom line, I had so much fun, made so many friends. And I absolutely cannot wait for school to start!

Orientation
Leadership Orientation truly prepared me for regular orientation, where I met around four hundred people all at once. Luckily I had my Leadership Orientation friends to mingle with! I made lots of friends at regular orientation, got to explore and learn about the campus, and even had a blast dancing to my own drum. Literally, dance party! No body understands how us Northern California girls dance!

Visiting Family
After orientation I got to stay with my family for a couple of days. We hung out, went to a county fair, and caught fireflies (something I hadn't had the chance to do in a very long time). My cousin and I even got to finally see the Harry Potter 7 Part II movie! It was good, the best out of all movies - but, nothing compared to the books (of course).

We even got my college shopping out of the way, well most of it. All I need is bedding, and alarm clock, storage, binders, books, and some clothes. Who knew that all that dorm crap was so expensive?!

AIPAC
After all my fun with orientation and family, I still had an amazing American Israel Public Affairs Committee Saban (College Student) conference to attend. I was initially very worried about making friends due to the fact that people already knew eachother, but I made some friends. I even met this amazing guy, but he lives very very far away. We even got to explore D.C., and we saw Horrible Bosses together. It was great, even the second time.

The Saban conferece truly inspired me to get active in politics and lobbying for what I believe in. I can't wait to get involved on campus. Oh, and I met Debbie Wasserman-Shultz. One of my idols!

Visiting My Sister
After all that, I flew home, slept for a day, and drove to Southern California to pick my sister up from camp. She's at an athletes camp, and eats very healthy. I'm going to start her program too! Here's how it goes:

I eat less than 20 grams of fat a day. (Fat is harder to burn off then carbs and proteins because it is more dense). And around 1220 calories a day. It's a healthy life choice, but I probably eat too much sugar!

Home At Last
Well, I'm home for the next few weeks! I have so much to do to get ready for school, and I don't even know where to start! My sister and I went for a beautiful run today, it was amazing. And I can't wait to start school!   

Hiking on a Lazy Sunday

Sorry that I've disappeared off the face of the earth these past few days, but I've had a super busy weekend. I'm not sure where to begin, so I guess I'll start at the beginning. I babysat my mom's boyfriend's brothers two daughters (so pretty much my cousins). They're so cute! We played games, made pasta, scootered, and did lots of arts and crafts. It was so fun. We made window art.

Then I slept over at my friend's house with a bunch of friends, it was lots and lots of fun. The next day, despite feeling exhausted, we went hiking. What started out as an innocent hike to the top of a mountain, turned out to a five hour hike through a super long ridge trail. We took lots of pictures.

There were lots of cows on the trail, and they were fun to look at from far away. However, we did have the unfortunate occurrence of running into a cow on the trail. We were so scared we practically pissed ourselves, so we had to go around (through the prickly grass). I legitimately thought I was going to die.

We found a tree with lots of carvings on it, and decided to make our own. It says A squared J. A for Adam and Aaron, and J for Julia!

 See the vultures?

We saw lots of wildlife, including this beetle.

And just for fun, you can see my tiny feet in comparison to Adam's monstrous feet. All in all, the hike was lots of fun. Around ten to twelve miles long - it was great for bonding, as well as discussing our plans for backpacking across Europe next summer. I hope it works out!

I love hiking, last year I hiked down the Grand Canyon, it was gorgeous. Do you like to hike? Where have you been that's especially spectacular?

Strawberries: It's a Love Hate Relationship

I love strawberries, but I hate their texture. It always makes me gag when I bite into the slimy fruit, crunching on little seeds. So as I sit here, slurping away on strawberry yogurt (the kind with chunks) - I'm at a bit of a loss. The yogurt itself is delicious, but it's those slimy chunks that I can't stand.

In fact, this is the first time I've ever had strawberry yogurt with real strawberries, the first time I've tried a real strawberry chunk in years. And nope, I still don't like it. When I was younger, I used to get the kid yogurt with sprinkles. It was generally strawberry flavored, but I always thought it was the artificial taste that I liked. Now I realize, yep, I like strawberries. Just not the texture. Ewwwah!

Actually, I used to legitimately be afraid of certain fruits. Like peaches, I used to cry (as a little girl) when ever I saw the inside of a peach. It. Would. Make. Me. Cry. Since when do fruits scare children? And watching "James and the Giant Peach" was no walk in the part either.

I guess it's sort of strange, I love strawberry flavored things, just not the fruit itself. The same is true with cherries, pomegranate, and oranges. I love cherry flavored things, I adore pomegranate frozen yogurt, and I drink lots of orange juice (without the pulp).

What strange foods do you have a "love hate relationship" with?

The End of an Era - The Space Age

Personally, I was never one to play astronaut. Sure, I loved learning about astronomy, the stars, and the constollations - but, I wanted to stay on earth rather then venture out into the galaxies above. Not to say it didn't fascinate me, I adored watching the 1999 Disney movie: Zenon. But i'd say my love for the milky way stopped there, the thought of aliens scared me.

Not to say it doesn't sadden me to see the Space Age go, I know that it's inevitable with budget cuts. Plus, we really haven't been adding much to our data pool. As for alien life, if it's really that advanced maybe it will find us first or make itself known. Maybe it already has and the government is keeping it a secret, or maybe we're not supposed to know.

 As many of you know, today in Cape Canaveral, Florida at the Kennedy Space Center (I went there when I was little, it's really cool), NASA had it's last launch with the space shuttle, Atlantis.

Atlantis, a four-person crew shuttle, began it's 12 day mission to the International Space Station. One million people viewed the spaceship on viewing sites along Florida as it took off at 11:26 AM.

Today marks the end of the space age. But maybe it's not the end, maybe it's a new beginning of new exploration.

After all the land on earth was discovered and conquered on earth, many thought that space was the final frontier. But with space's frontier closing, leaving us to know just as little bit about it's complexities as ever, we're left without wonder. Sure, there are trillions of questions that circle our minds about our existence. But our curiosities about life on other planets is put on lay away.

Is this the end of an era? Will we explore space once again? What will our new fixation be?

 If you're interested in reading fiction about space, check out one of my favorite books The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury (1950). Initially I read the novel for school, and I did not think I would like it one bit. I generally hate all the books we read at school. But instead, I ended up adoring each chapter, soaking in the literacy and science fiction world.

The story links together different science fiction vignettes about the exploration of mars, and how men ends up conquering the planet - but killing all life. "The earthman conquers mars... and then is conquered by it." It's a great book, and whether or not you like Mars, it's beautifully written and truly captivating. Given you like some element of science fiction.

Laziness is nothing more than the habit of resting before you get tired. - Julius Renard

I'm lazy. What? Like you're not lazy sometimes too? We all do it, it's life. But, why does the word "lazy" have such a negative connotation? I mean, it's not like it affects anyone else - just me. I mean, I just like to sit there on my computer for as long as possible before going up and doing something or going somewhere. I think that we all do it to an extent. Psht, you think you're all high and mighty.

Anyway, I'm really trying to curve this nasty habit. So I've been doing a bunch of different things to try to make my life and summer more meaningful.

For one, I try to get out of the house. I go to work every day from 9-5 (though sometimes there's nothing for me to do because I'm the Intern, so I go online), I also hang out with friends, and I'm going to Orientation and some Leadership Seminars next week! Yippee.

Two. I try to do new things that are productive. For example, I started this blog - and I feel like its productive, even if it doesn't get thousands of views. Hey, I'm thankful that someone other then myself is reading! I'm also trying to watch more movies and read more books, so I can expand my mind and widen my horizons. Not to mention, I'm trying to get back into arts such as painting. Oh, and I'm writing a novel with my friend. And it's not crap like most of those books you hear about, it's actually pretty good and I'm a book snob.

Three. I'm trying to keep track of my finances. My mom says that "I have a hole in my pocket." So I'm trying not to eat out anymore, hopefully that will always cut all the "crap I eat."

Four. I'm trying to exercise more. I went to the gym today, score. I haven't gone in ages. My mom's probably about to kill me after she's been paying for the membership for so long. Anyways, it felt good to sweat and then shower it away. Even if I only did the elliptical for thirty minutes. Hey, you have to start somewhere.

Anyway, I hope that this summer (by far the most tone-downed and relaxing) will be remembered for all the leisure time I had, and all the productive things I've done. Not to mention all the college stuff I've been getting together! This is the first time since elementary school that I'm actually excited for classes to begin!

What do you do to curve your laziness?