Document Your Life | Summer 2016

If We Were Having Coffee....

If We Were Having Coffee was created by Ashley over at Your Super Awesome Life. Grab your coffee (or Cherry Coca Cola, in my case), and lets chat a bit about what's been going on in our lives! Inspiration for the "questions" at the end is from Perpetual Page Turner.

If we were having coffee... I would tell you that the summer seems to be passing in a blur and that I am completely okay with it. Though summer is usually my favorite season, I find that this year I am not as into the hot weather and humidity as I usually am, though that may have to do with the fact that I have been working outside full-time. I am 100% ready for autumn. I'd ask you what your plans are for the final few weeks of summer, and whether you did anything fun or exciting that made June and July memorable?


If we were having coffee... I would tell you that the last few weeks have been tough for my family. We have been going through some stuff and kind of pinned all of our hopes on an outcome that didn't end up happening. A few days later, we received even more bad news. It has been a roller coaster of emotions and though everyone is trying to remain upbeat, I can feel the hopelessness underneath. I'd ask what you do to make yourself feel better when it seems like the world is working against you?


If we were having coffee... I would tell you that I have recently been working on time management and finding different schedules that work for me so that I can accomplish everything that I need to accomplish without becoming too stressed and overworked. It seems to be working so far. I have figured out that if I get over the fact that I am not a morning person and wake up around 6:30/7:00 every morning, I am able to get quite a bit of stuff done before I go to work, including homework, blog posts, and video uploads, which leaves my evenings free for relaxing. I'd ask if you have any time management tips??


If we were having coffee... I would tell you that I have been working on a short story for one of my classes and that it seems to have rekindled the inspiration for some of my older projects. Sitting down and actually writing has always been the part I have had the most trouble with - editing will forever be my favorite part of the process - but I have discovered a groove and am excited to explore it a bit more with ideas that are not school-related. I'd ask if you have been lacking inspiration for anything lately, and what you do to get it back?


If we were having coffee... I would tell you that I am really, really, really excited for the Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children movie that is coming out in September. I keep watching the trailer for it over and over again because it is glorious. I'd ask what movie you have recently watched/loved or whether there is one coming out soon that you are excited for?

If we were having coffee, what would you say? Let me know, or link up your own post in the comments!

Ten Facts About Me [Top Ten Tuesday]

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. Each week they update their blog with a list of ten things that have to do with a predetermined topic.

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This can be a terrible quality to have sometimes, let me tell you. I hate it when things are out of place, messed up, or beyond my control. I despise change, disorganization and getting things wrong. All of these things tend to work together to constantly mess with my anxiety and throw me into an I MUST BE ABLE TO DO ALL THE THINGS RIGHT THE FIRST TIME AROUND mode, and I get really upset with myself if I can't make a situation better, do something wrong, or experience a change.

 

The best time of the week for me is when I can plan for the next one. I color-coordinate everything, map it out, and am always aware of what is happening at least a week ahead of time. Is that weird?

 

Anytime I go somewhere or meet someone new, they are always, always, always caught off guard when I get comfortable enough to joke around, and are never prepared for how sarcastic and cynical my sense of humor can be, especially because I am usually very quiet and reserved.

 

I was always afraid I was going to get into an accident or that I would get hurt/mess up somehow (thanks, anxiety), but last summer I finally decided that I would put all of my worries aside and go ahead and try for it. I am still unwilling to get behind the wheel of the car sometimes, but I really enjoy the freedom that comes along with having my license now, and the fact that I can go to the bookstore anytime I want without having to talk someone into giving me a ride!

*book shopping

We have a puppy preschool class at my place of employment once a week, and my coworkers make fun of me because I will literally swoon every time a dog walks by. I can't help it! They are so adorable, and I want about fifty of my own. I also freak out any time I see a rabbit, whether it be wild or in a store, and I have been known to go into a pet store for something and come home with a baby rabbit (seriously. this has happened twice). I currently have three of them, and the sad thing is, I don't show them or enter them in anything; I just think they make great pets!

 

Harry Potter relaxes me, so whenever I find myself with a day off or a bit of free time, I will pop in one of the movies (usually the first or second), and clean/do stuff with it playing in the background.

Yep. It's kind of sad, now that I think about it. The first time was my freshman year of high school, and my family and I went to Florida on vacation. I had so much fun visiting new places, lounging about the beach, and exploring Disney World! The second time I went out of state, I was was with my choir, junior year. We went to Chicago to partake in a national competition and won six trophies, which was cool. That was my first ever trip without my parents, and my very first time in a big city. I had a lot of fun and would LOVE to go back soon! Actually, I would like to go anywhere soon, just so I can bump that Times-I-Went-Out-of-State number up a bit.

I was very, very sick my senior year of high school, both physically and mentally, because my immune system decided to work against me that year. Add that to my regular, every day anxiety, plus the anxiety that accompanies senior year and all of the worries/problems from missing so much school, and I fell into a deep depression. When I wasn't physically ill, I would be so tired and stressed and anxious and worried and in a dark, dark place that I couldn't drag myself out of bed and made the situation even worse. I missed most of the year, my good grades plummeted, and I was not able to graduate with my class. I didn't end up graduating until almost a year later. It was not a fun experience.

I always say it's the summertime because I love the heat, but after working outside these last few months, I have changed my mind. Please don't tell my mom; I've made a pretty big deal about loving summer and the heat pretty much every single day of my life. I just love the colors, the warm-but-not-too-warm weather, and wearing comfy sweaters.

THE SMELLS ARE EVERYWHERE! I am constantly having to excuse myself from situations because people are putting on lotion, perfume or hand sanitizer. My mom and sister are awful about spraying way too much perfume and chasing me out of a room because the smell is so overwhelming that I start experiencing an allergic reaction. I cannot wash my clothes in certain detergents or fabric softeners, which makes the static unbearable, and I can't go into places that sell scented bath items or have burning candles because my allergies freak out and try to murder me. Basically, vanilla is the only scent I am 100% okay with.

What are some things you would like me to know about you?

Document Your Life | Spring 2016

May, in Photographs

This month I explored a park, my mom and I stumbled across a beautiful wooded part of our town, and I finally created a Snapchat!

April Rewind

» This month I.... «

▫ Enjoyed some beautiful spring weather by opening windows and eating ice cream - finally. It has once again turned cold and rainy, but I am looking forward to the sun and warm that are sure to follow.

▫ Finished one term and started another. Only a year left!

▫ Passed my driver's exam and did lots of solo driving! Oh, freedom.

▫ Nearly had a heart attack when Oliver, the git, got himself stuck behind one of our furnaces. We eventually got him out, but I am forever scarred.

▫ Started a new, week-in-review segment on the blog. Check it out.

▫ Our car broke down and we were all stuck without a way around for about a week before we were finally able to purchase a new one. Thankfully, I like this new vehicle much better.

▫ Freaked out over the season finale of Scorpion.

▫ Eagerly awaited the arrival of the final book in Maggie Stiefvater's Raven Cycle series, The Raven King, only to be emailed by Amazon on the day of its release saying that it would be another few days before I would get it. Freaking out, I cancelled my order and drove out of town to pick it up at Barnes & Noble. A bit crazy, maybe, but it was worth it.

▫ Celebrated my dad's 60th birthday a few days early.

▫ Wrote a Walter/Paige fanfic.

March Snapshots:

» Book(s) I've Been Reading «

» Movies/Shows I've Been Watching «

I finally sat down to watch Divergent this month, and wow. I am eager to see what happens next. Also, I was absolutely certain I would dislike Theo James as Four because he seemed a little too macho and was definitely not my type, but my mind has been changed, hello.

Until the episode that aired a few weeks ago, The 100 was becoming a little unbearable. Everyone was dying, the plot was shit, and there was no substance. Thankfully, all of my wonderful delinquents are back together again, fighting side by side, and things are finally starting to make sense. I've been getting that season 1 feeling, and I love it. I really hope it continues, particularly the Bellark/delinquent scenes. 

The season 2 finale of Scorpion premiered on the 25th of this month and wowza. I thought season 1 ended on a pretty big cliffhanger, but this last episode has it beat. I cannot believe I have to wait until the end of summer to get new episodes and find out what happened after Walter left the garage! There were a few times this season when I felt like the episodes were repeating themselves or didn't seem as interesting, but I would definitely have to say that Scorpion is one of my favorite shows despite this, with one of my favorite pairings, and I cannot wait to see where it goes from here.

» Songs I've Been Listening To «

Please Don't Say You Love Me by Gabrielle Aplin

 Home by Gabrielle Aplin
 

» Other Favorites «

- NONE -

» What I've Been Up to On Youtube «

25 Bookish Facts About Me

▫ Intimidating Books | T5W

▫ Favorite Mother Figures | T5W

Spring has arrived

The change a week can make! The snow is mostly gone and the weather has warmed up considerably. I take immense joy in throwing open my bedroom window every morning and allowing the sweet, flowery smell of spring to fill the house.

Overall, this week was an easy one. Not much was going on, so I was at home for most of it. Tuesday and Wednesday were spent the same way as last week - working, grocery shopping, and cleaning. On Thursday, the stress set in. My family has had a very difficult year and a half, and Thursday was the day something would be presented to people who could help us out. Though they have yet to make their decision, Thursday was the beginning of what we hope is the end, and everyone in our house was feeling it. In an attempt to distract myself, I made the mistake of browsing the organization and decor tag of Pintrest during work that morning, and the rest of the afternoon/evening was spent moving things around in my room and breathing in a lot of dust. I did take a break to watch the new episode of The 100; it was wonderful. I'm so glad my little delinquents are back together again!

Friday was kind of a bad day. I woke up in an awful mood for no reason and spent the rest of the day alienating myself from everyone else and basically taking offense at any and every tiny, unimportant thing. That morning, I ran to the store to pick up some containers so that I could finish my organization project. Normally, this would have been fun, but I had to work the After School program, so everything was kind of done in a rush, which only made my mood worse. I generally don't enjoy working after school, because the people that run it do not speak or joke around much and the kids can get kind of crazy. I got to leave a little early that day, though, which was nice. Once I got home, I had to call my academic advisor so that we could figure out a way to get my textbooks before the evening was over and found out that I had been paying for my schoolbooks out of pocket for the last three years when there were book vouchers available, and no one had told me about them. Uhg. Then, because I was down in the dumps, I decided to treat myself to some ice cream. This ended with my mother and I driving around town looking for a cheap place that sold some, and waiting in line at the park for half and hour behind a bunch of high school girls. My mood worsened.

On Saturday, our car broke down. Thankfully, it didn't happen while I was driving because, as a new driver, I have no doubt I would have freaked out and made the situation worse. Because of the gorgeous weather, I had just gotten back from walking in this little wooded area at the edge of town with a friend, her daughter, and our dog, Copper, when my mom and brother decided to go and get something to eat. The car broke down while they were out. Unfortunately, it was not the first time the car has done something like this and, at this point, we are all feeling a little hopeless when it comes to getting it back in working order. Someone is supposed to come today to look at it; fingers crossed he can do something. I had myself a little movie night on Friday and also managed to finish reading The Book of Ivy, which was amazing.

All I did on Sunday was lay around. The weather was beautiful, but I had zero motivation to do anything about it, so the afternoon was spent filming videos and starting/finishing Hyperbole and a Half, a book I had originally read back in 2014. Once I was done with that, I finished up my schoolwork and was free for the rest of the day. I have been trying some new time management techniques and I've found that they really seem to be working for me. Usually, Sunday is spent trying to catch up on a week's worth of schoolwork; I quite enjoy not having to deal with the shame that accompanies that level of procrastination anymore.

Today will be spent much like last Monday was; I have to work in the evening and then will end the night with a new episode of Scorpion. It is rumored that Walter and Paige will kiss tonight. I'm looking forward to it.

New ideas

In an attempt to keep this blog alive, I have come up with a few new ideas including more reviews, and this: a weekly life update, just to name a few. We will see how it pans out.

Oh, Ohio weather... I would hibernate from the final stages of autumn until early summer if I could. I never could handle anything under seventy degrees, and the fact that there is three inches of snow on the ground right now, during spring, is killing me.

Tuesday morning I had to drag myself from the comfort of my warm blankets and head to work, bleary-eyed and groggy, in order to set up for Bounce and Play, which my place of employment hosts twice a week for young children, allowing them to kick balls around and enjoy a bounce house if they so wish. After work, I had to rush off to the eye doctor in order to pick up my "official" contacts. While there, the woman ringing me up tried to charge me an additional $100 for an eye exam I had already paid for two weeks prior, and I only managed to catch the mistake at the last moment, rescuing my bank account from an empty belly. Tuesday was also the final day of term, so most of it was spent simultaneously stressing out about an English paper that I had yet to finish writing, and laying around with zero motivation.

I had Wednesday off from work, but it was anything but relaxing. I had failed my driver's exam a week before and spent the last seven days stressing out about five orange cones and my inability to reverse properly when under pressure. (I did ace the actual driving part, though.) I had been sick to my stomach with nerves the past week and despite the fact I did it perfectly during practice, I was sure I would fail maneuverability once again and forever be driver's license-less. 3:15pm rolled around, my hands were shaking on the steering wheel, the instructor sat beside me, pen poised, and sure enough, I knocked over another cone. I was devastated. Thankfully, she must have noticed how nervous I was because she let me do it again, and this time it was executed perfectly. Success!

I worked a split-shift on Thursday, and both shifts required me to set up and take down a plethora of bounce houses—the first time was for Bounce & Play, and the second was for a Preschool family night we were hosting—so I did nothing but watch the new episode of The 100 when I finally got home. The show is not doing that great, in my opinion. Everyone is dying/being killed off, and I find the characters a lot less likeable than they were a season ago. Thanks, writers.

Friday started off great, as I finally got to drive around town by myself. I hit up the Library and Walmart, and was actually able to listen to my own music for once. Why I decided to wait ten years before attempting to get a license is beyond me. The day took an unexpected turn, however, when one of my rabbits, Oliver, decided to wedge himself behind our furnace and could not get out. We spent an hour and forty minutes trying to get his feet back under him and coax him out, but nothing seemed to be working. Finally, when we were just about ready to give up and I was practically dehydrated from crying, I had the great idea to place my female rabbit at the end near his head, and try to convince him to come out and get her. It worked! He finally managed to squeeze himself out of a barely-two-inch gap, and seemed to be none the worse for wear. The same could not be said of me.

Saturday was when we received the three inches of snow, and since I had to walk to work, I was not a happy camper. Birthday parties were hosted and Family Night was had. Since I was working another split-shift, I was able to take the car to work for Family Night that evening, and I quite enjoyed being able to close a door to the cold and immediately turn on the heat that night, rather than waiting for a ride to show up.

Sundays are usually for homework, but since the new term had yet to start, I was able to relax for most of the day. I did have to run a few errands and pick up seventeen pizzas for my mother, who was hosting a dinner for the youth at our church but, all in all, it was a relatively quiet day. I decided to introduce my two male rabbits again, now that Oliver is fixed, and it went surprisingly well. Hopefully I can put them together soon and Louis can get the peace she deserves.

Which brings us to today. Term has started again, but I probably will not make any sort of attempt at homework until Wednesday. Instead, I will edit a video, work, and maybe watch that new episode of Scorpion that is supposed to air tonight. If only the weather would warm up...

March Rewind

» This month I.... «

▫ Celebrated my brother's 18th birthday.

▫ Got contacts!

▫ Took my rabbit, Oliver, in to be neutered. This was an extremely difficult decision, because the last rabbit I took in ended up dying from the anesthesia, but Oliver came out of the surgery okay and is back to his perky, ornery self!

▫ Took my driver's exam. I passed the driving part, but failed maneuverability, even though I had done it perfectly a hundred times during practice. Thanks, anxiety... Here's to hoping next month's Rewind includes a comment saying I've passed!

March Snapshots:

» Book(s) I've Been Reading «

[ March wrap-up video coming soon! ]

» Movies/Shows I've Been Watching «

 

I put off watching the final two movies for years because I didn't want the journey to end, but this month I finally decided to sit down and watch them! They were incredibly good and I cried a lot.

 

I also finally got around to watching Catching Fire and it's all I could think about this month.

 

Oh, man, the nostalgia. I used to watch this show all the time in high school; it's the perfect mixture of funny, sad and creepy. My sister recently bought a boxed set of the series and I have slowly been making my way through the episodes. They're just as good as I remember!

» Songs I've Been Listening To «

Home (ii) by Dotan

Little Lion Man by Mumford and Sons

» Other Favorites «

- NONE -

» What I've Been Up to On Youtube «

Document Your Life | Winter 2015/16

▫ Biggest Book Hangovers

▫ Spring TBR | Top Ten Tuesday

▫ Books I Don't Talk About Enough | Top Ten Tuesday

▫ Books I DNF | T5W