a note on me.

"Not all those who wander are lost.."
- J.R.R. Tolkien

Wanderlusting hard!

lately

Life has been hectic, like usual.
Two weekend trips in two weeks, with a third to come this weekend!
Last weekend I visited Dallas for about 20 hours to give my parents a hug, see my sister who flew in from LA, and spend some time with my grandparents who had also come up to visit. I only stayed one night because I had to get back to College Station for a mandatory game day event that (of course) got cancelled due to rain. Instead, I got to watch our Aggies BTHO Arkansas in the middle of a downpour. It was awesome! Thank God for ponchos and rain boots.
This weekend I took a spur of the moment road trip to Norman, Oklahoma with three other Delta Gammas to visit the OU chapter as they hosted their biggest Bi-Annual event, Delta Gamma Lectureship in Values and Ethics. Their guest speaker was GIULIANA RANCIC from E! Hollywood, who spoke about her battle with breast cancer, infertility, and getting into the entertainment business without selling out. She was inspiring, and post-lecture we mosied through OU's astounding greek neighborhoods before spending the night in the SPRAWLING Oklahoma DG house. Little adventures like this are what college is supposed to be made of. I'm now talking with one of the girls about making some trans-American roadtrips to visit various cities with awesome DG chapters who will let us stay in their houses for free while we explore. We'll only get the chance to be collegians once, so why not take advantage of it?
Coming up this Friday through Sunday is my biggest investment of the year, AUSTIN CITY LIMITS MUSIC FESTIVAL! I am so fired up to see so many awesome bands in one weekend, I just need to find some people to carpool with...

In other news, I've started writing in a journal daily to hopefully improve my memory loss and create a fun little memoir of my glory days here in college-land.
I'm also exploring study abroad programs with the intention of convincing my parents that the experience is worth the cost and silly possibly-non-applicable courses I'd be taking. Fingers crossed!

Blah blah blah, I need to pick a topic for this blog instead of using it like a personal diary. I would hands-down choose travel or crafts if I had any spare time to think about travelling or crafting. One day..
Happy Monday!

New Chapters

I absolutely love the start of the school year. Everything about it is right up my alley. New paper goods, new friends, new classes, a swelling wave of activities and responsibilities, and the return of a schedule.

I'm halfway done with my second week back and so much has already happened.

The SECOND I got home from Jill and I's exhausting 17 day road trip, I changed all four of my tired tires and got right back on the road to College Station. I had to be back two weeks before school to prepare for sorority recruitment, possibly my least favorite time of the year. After a crazy work week and an even more insane rush week, we picked 58 absolutely beautiful, talented, amazing new members to eventually become our new Delta Gamma sisters. While I find the recruitment process mostly superficial and frustrating, I have gotten the chance to see the hearts of some of these new girls and I am so excited for what Member Class 2012 will bring to our chapter!

Of course, CLASSES HAVE BEGUN! I love school. Does that make me nerdy? Probably, but I truly love learning. Other than Business Law, a class required for my business minor, I love each of my courses, even Biomedical Genetics. I only have class Monday through Thursday, but each day my schedule gets longer, starting at 8-11:30 on Monday and ending at 9:30-5 on Thursday. I spend about 80% of my days in the same building, the Horticultural and Floral Sciences Building and greenhouses getting my hands dirty, trying unusual fruit cultivars, and installing interiorscapes. My major rules.

The first Monday back to school, my roommates Macy, Lizzie and I decided to get a kitten. She is loving and adorable and peppy, perfectly suited by her name, Scout! I take waaay to many photos of her and each day I can't wait for classes to end so I can go hang out with her. She sleeps next to me in my bed at night and often during my naps after busy days and takes care of herself when I can't be there. She's a dream.

In between all of that, my position as DG Director of Creative Design has been very demanding. A&M's first football season in the SEC begins this weekend with a home game and that means BANNERS! Here's what we got started last night at the house:

They're not completely finished but I'm so happy with the amount of help I've received! Banner painting has NEVER gone this quickly or smoothly.

I feel like I could still go on and on about what's been going on in my life but even I'm bored by this post by now. I hope everyone is having a great Wednesday!

ROADTRIP!

Last night, Jill and I finally finished our itinerary for our trans-western-american road trip coming up in less than THREE WEEKS! Here's our plan!

Day 1: Dallas to Carlsbad Caverns, NM, camp.

Day 2: Carlsbad during the day and drive to Albuquerque that evening.

Day 3: Albuquerque, NM to Antelope Canyon in AZ to Grand Canyon for the sunset, hostel.

Day 4: Grand Canyon exploration followed by a drive to Joshua Tree Nat'l Park in CA, camp.

Day 5: Joshua Tree to L.A. to see my sister!

Day 6: Day in Los Angeles and night in Beverly Hills with my sister.

Day 7: L.A. to Big Sur, CA, sleep in a hostel near Big Sur.

Day 8: Monterey to Carmel, CA to Yosemite Valley, hostel.

Day 9: All day in Yosemite National Park, hostel.

Day 10: All day in Yosemite National Park, hostel.

Day 11: Morning in Tuolumne Meadows near Yosemite to Bodie, CA to Lake Tahoe!

Day 12: Day and night at Lake Tahoe

Day 13: Lake Tahoe to Napa Valley to Muir Woods National Monument (Redwoods!!), hostel.

Day 14: Petaluma, CA to San Francisco, day in San Francisco, HOTEL!

Day 15: San Fran to Fort Bragg, CA for LEAH'S WEDDING! After the wedding, drive drive drive drive, hopefully reaching L.A. by midnight

Day 16: Driving back to Dallas until we pass out, hopefully making it to Albuquerque, NM

Day 17: I am supposed to be in College Station, TX at 8:00am... yeah right.

We are so incredibly excited to camp and hostel and couch surf our way to the beautiful Fort Bragg, CA.

My personal goals on this trip: Donuts for breakfast at least once, 500 photos taken, a natural souvenir from each location, equal parts jill photos and kate photos, see a blonde bear, make new traveling friends around a campfire, Gig 'em and sailor salute at each location, not get kidnapped.

Jill and I will be co-authoring a blog or tumblr during our trip and right as we are preparing so will post a link to that when we get it set up. Get excited, world!

Leah's Shower Invites

Now that Leah's bridal shower has passed, I want to begin sharing some odds and ends from the design. It's finally far enough in the past that I can think about it without getting sweaty palms.

While researching a theme for Leah's bridal shower, Jill and I came across this cute little baby shower invitation on Pinterest and we fell in love! Having no idea where it came from and being on a ridiculous budget ($0), I decided to re-create it digitally.

After hours of laboring on a frustrating photoshop/paint hybrid knockoff called Gimp, our adorable "rain showers" invitation was finished.

The background was actually white but we printed it on sunshine yellow and transparent milky white paper, used a Martha Stewart decorative punch on the ends, and attached it to various Paper Source patterns. The end result was perfect and each invite was unique!

After assembly we added labels with Leah's registry information, hand written by Jill.

What do you think? We were very proud of the end result. Up next, decorations!

a random assortment with no design whatsoever

things I'm really feeling right now:

Yesterday I threw a bridal shower with Jill for her older sister, Leah! It was adorable and we have a billion pictures but this weekend continues to kick my butt with a double at work today, so I'll have to update later. Here's my reminder to myself!
Happy Sunday!

so...

One thing I realized from last night's small group...

Regardless of how 'busy' I think I am.

That is all.

new shop skillz

I have always been a digital media nerd. I LOVE videography, music editing, and creating digital pieces. I took three years of broadcast journalism in high school and wanted so badly to be a news anchor, video editor, or studio recorder for the longest time.

Lately I've moved into typography and layout, something that just comes with blog territory, I suppose, but I've never pursued this because I'm poor and don't want to buy professional programs like Illustrator and Photoshop.

To help deal, I downloaded a frustrating program similar to photoshop circa 2001 called "Gimp," an appropriate name as the program is finicky and difficult to maneuver. Through trial and error I have learned some skills, one of which I discovered today.

I present you with this simple piece ... Now, sit in awe of my new "mad skillz."

Hopefully this is just the beginning and now that I can do something I really enjoy in its final state, the knowledge will just start flooding in. Yay, practice!

wednesday

This summer I am taking a Spanish course. I absolutely love Spanish, don’t get me wrong, but I have never experienced a class that drags on so slowly. It is taught entirely in Spanish so we have to simultaneously translate and comprehend instructions and lessons. I look at the clock, mentally exhausted, feeling like I’ve been in this class for ages, and it’s 9:02. The class begins at 8:00.

One awesome thing about this class: We have a TOTAL “Pierce”. For those of you not familiar with the TV series Community, “Pierce” is an older man who takes classes with the younger college students and says absolutely inappropriate things, is often insensitive or racist, and makes jokes that nobody understands or thinks are funny.

For example: Yesterday, we had to stand in front of the class and present 8 sentences about “why we forgot to bring our homework to class.” I wrote about having the flu. Many people said their dog ate it or their house burned down. “Pierce” wrote about having too much tequila at the bar and getting hung up at a lady friend’s home.
Keep in mind this class is open to high school students.

It was hilarious.

In other news, I’ve been wrestling with some big changes in my life lately, most of which are not fit for sharing with the world, and I’m emotionally exhausted from it. My biggest issues stem from being unable to be assertive with those I care about for fear of offending them or being misunderstood.

Prayers for courage and assertiveness are greatly appreciated!

To spice up this boring update, here's some goodies I found in the trash before I emptied it!

normal.

also normal.

short hair!

adventure day

Recently I've had an itch. Call it wanderlust, but I feel like a more appropriate term is adventurelust. I am dying to have adventurous experiences, whether through travel or otherwise. To scratch this adventure-itch, a visited a nearby limestone quarry with some guy friends and began my first outdoor adventure:

Cliff jumping.

The jump was 45-50 ft and literally breathtaking. Unfortunately when you take adventures with boys, nobody is there to take pictures of YOU, so my jump was not documented, but none the less exhilarating and the perfect introduction to the adventures I've been craving. The place was beautiful; a completely uncharacteristic landscape for McKinney, TX.

A few more photos from the day.

I'm looking for more adventurous activities, preferably outdoors, in the Dallas area if anybody knows of one!

Happy Friday!

thursday

Today I was exhausted and my stomach hurt so a laid down on the couch for a few minutes to nap. Along comes my wonderful kitten Dinah and together we watched an episode of "Hoarding" before I had to go to work.

It's the little things that make me happy.

Wednesday

My older sister Liz is a real catch. She's a free spirit, super artsy, and doesn't really care what anybody thinks of her. We weren't the best of friends while I was younger because, honestly, we were both brats, but now that we're older, we're incredibly similar for all of our differences and have gotten close.

This past summer she up and moved to Los Angeles to pursue her dream of being a freelance photographer and basically just be awesome. Now that she's been gone for almost a year, I can truly say I miss her being around. She's one of the most entertaining people I know.

We're both artsy thanks to our parents, but especially interested in tattoos. She's got three or four and I'm trailing behind a bit, having gotten my first just last August.

Today I asked Liz if she'd like to get a tattoo with me. Not surprisingly, she was totally game! This summer she's coming back to Texas to visit for a bit, and while she's here, we're going to see her friend Lucas to get a variation of this fox tattooed on our forearms!

Presh.

I'm super excited and can't wait for this summer to get underway! Sisters in a sorority are great but nothing compares to the real thing. I can't wait to share this memory with Liz.

Tomorrow I'm heading home with my newly repaired car tires to spend time with my awesome parents and my BFF JILL!!!! I desperately need some lazy tan time by the pool before summer school starts.

Love!

and in other news..

Today I wanted to go for a quick little run before the weather got too bad..

And got caught in the rain for about a mile. After I got home, I felt like a total beast, illustrated above. That's my beast face. Sorry about it.

It was actually incredibly refreshing and exactly what I needed after the drama surrounding these last two weeks. I came home feeling like a brand new person, and, despite the solemn weather, a positive outlook.

Acts 3 :19 "Repent and return, that your sins might be washed away, so that times of refreshing can come from the presence of the Lord."

Good stuff.

surreal

Well first off, I know, it's been awhile.. almost two weeks! Let me work backwards through what has happened in my life during the last 10 days.

5. I've been a busy little bee preparing for the end of this semester, and yesterday it finally happened. My first half of college is complete. Where did the time go?

I'M A FIGHTIN' TEXAS AGGIE JUNIOR!

A-A-A WHOOP!

MY finals are FINISHED (except for an online Spanish final I reeeally need to knock out..) and now I can just relax and head home on my own time! Until my Maymester starts in less than a week.. blah.

4. I broke three and a half miles running the other day! I can officially run a 5k without a care, which is exactly why my mom and I are registering for TWO when I get home later this week!

3. I've re-discovered one of my passions in life...

MetroMint water. SO GOOD. Try the peppermint and spearmint!

2. My sorority formal was May 2nd and I took one of my very best friends, Mr. Conner Smith. He was a hit! Literally everybody was like "WHO IS THIS GUY AND CAN YOU BRING HIM EVERY TIME?!" Fun fact: Conner and I went to homecoming together our Freshman year of high school and took this cute little photo,

so of course we had to try and re-enact it as college kids! I'm pretty sure he's wearing the exact same tie too... I didn't quite get our pose down. Next time I'll look at the original before I re-enact.

1. Oh yeah, did I mention my BIRTHDAY happened?

Well it did folks, and I am officially past the age where it's okay to have no clue what I want to do with my life! That's right. 20. I still don't know quite how to feel about this phenomena. I am without a road map, but I'm perfectly content to wander for a few more years.

That's just a little update to the world. Today I had planned on laying out and being 100% lazy but it's quite cloudy and dreary so I might end up taking my car in to get a tire issue resolved before I drive back to Dallas. Adulthood. Woo!

Thursday/Workout #3

I never quite got around to posting today's workout. I really really wanted to run 3 miles, but walked too much to count it as a complete run. So here's the running part..

So close to 3 miles!

Amen! I have been using these runs as a vent for all the frustrated/angry/confused/anxious energy I store up over the course of the previous day and spend a good chunk of my time thinking things over. I also really enjoy this new habit of listening to Breakaway podcasts because I know I'm using my otherwise free time for spiritual growth and it feel GOOD!

I've been researching several half-marathon training plans and each of them have at least one rest day a week and two cross training sessions that I can fill with an hour of any other cardio/exercise, which means tomorrow morning at 6:00am I'm waking up for Sunrise Yoga at the student rec center with one of my roommates and another girl from the house. I haven't done yoga since probably Christmas so we'll see how this goes.. Later in the day I'm going to do some aerobic swimming with Ryan followed by some much appreciated tanning time with my sistas. I can't wait!

Until tomorrow!

Does anybody else dislike this new blogger set-up? I'm turned around and a bit frustrated, much like when myspace got a facelift, and then Facebook did the same. It's like my virtual world had an earthquake and my bedroom's all jumbled around in a giant pile.
AmIRight?

This morning I missed my only class, an 8:00am. The entire week I've been up and at 'em by 8, and today, the one day it matters, I don't even bother getting out of bed. Such is life!
It's not like that was the last class before my final.. oh wait. -_-
So instead, today I will go shopping for maxi dresses. I may be a mini human, but I'm a mini human that can shorten and hem maxi dresses. Maybe I'll wear said maxi dress to the horticultural gardens and plan this weekend's birthday trip to some underground caves near San Marcos!

Today's sounds: Young the Giant, Foster the People, Phoenix, and Fleet Foxies.

On that note, I'll leave you with this:

Vulpes vulpes

The Red Fox

UPDATE: Didn't find the perfect maxi, but I studied the pattern of the ones I liked and I'm buying some rayon and jersey in a few days to just sew my own!

My next craft EASILY will be:

It really is all ok.

That is all.

"Overcoming Jealousy" applied

You know how it feels to almost enjoy seeing someone who you might envy fail at something? I can relate to that whole heartedly. There are certain people it almost pains me to see succeed.
Say this other person gets a job; suddenly that's the only job I ever wanted and I hate her for it.
Say she gets a great haircut. Instantly I'm bitter that I hadn't acted on my impulses and gotten that hair cut a month ago.
Say she has an unfortunate experience. My day is suddenly brighter.
I've always assumed my jealousy and envy had everything to do with this person because that's where it was focused. Today's breakaway podcast got me thinking differently:

"It's not even about THEM.. it's about you. The problem isn't the person, it's in you! And you want to know where the real problem is? It's not even between you and another person... You have a problem with God."

What? Come again? My problem isn't with this girl, but with God himself? You must be kidding me. I love God! He's given me everything in this world and there's no way I could ever hold any issue with myself against Him.

"Here's the hard fact tonight.. Whatever problem you feel like you have or inadequacy you believe you've got tonight, God could have fixed that. He could have made you cuter, funnier, more athletic, more talented... and He didn't, and that's the truth."
"He's not always fair, and he never said he would be, but he's good."

And there it is. He has given us these faults and "short comings" and problems within ourselves to overcome because it's all part of His plan for us.

Hebrews 12:1 "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us."

"God has given you a different race, and so don't be jealous of others. God's got something for you and you don't know it yet, but you know Him, so run!"

You can imagine how ironic it was to hear this while I was actually running. I picked that specific message knowing jealousy was something I struggled with daily and got a little nod of affirmation that it was directed to me.
I've got no idea what my race is or where it's headed or if I've even left the starting gates, but I do know that my goal now is just to run, whole heartedly and with endurance.
I need this action of physically running to give myself quiet time with God. I am literally running away from all other distractions that could get in between me and Him. It gives my day a new sense of purpose and focus that I haven't had in forever. I feel more aware of how I treat others and my own body. I am able to let go of the reigns and just BE. It's a funny feeling.
Double post today. Yikes!

Wednesday/ Workout #2

       Since yesterday I have been catching up on a campus-wide bible study A&M has every Tuesday called Breakaway. Five to nine THOUSAND college students travel to our basketball arena once a week and worship God and get incredibly applicable lessons from the most amazing study leader, Ben Stuart. Unfortunately I've only made it to a few of these this semester and with recent events really found myself craving the guidance and encouragement Breakaway generally provides. I downloaded the last 10 weeks of services and started moving along, listening to three yesterday and another today while I ran.
So far I've covered:
        Song of Songs Part 1: Attraction
        Song of Songs Part 2: Deepening
        Song of Songs Part 3: Wedding Night
        Overcome Jealousy
We're currently finishing up a study of Song of Solomon focusing on attraction, love, sex, marriage, and the like, but if you scroll down there are tons of other topics.. Earlier we went through the lines of the Lord's Prayer.. "Engage the World" from the beginning of this school year was great too. They're all great! Here's the link:

Breakaway Podcasts

Listening to these is amazing therapy for me. I can bring my focus away from the issues I'm dealing with and set my sights back on God, something I'm struggling with a lot. Lately I can't make myself sit down and read my Bible so having someone break it down for me audibly is incredibly helpful.

Today's workout: (While listening to "Overcome Jealousy")

 

I don't like to run in squares.. I get lost and scared easily on runs so I tend to run up a distance and then turn around and go back the exact way I came. ha! What a weird kid.

work out #1

So today I started my half marathon training and I already like the way I feel.

I've been up since 8:00 since I had advising at 9:30 so I've already been to campus and back, accomplished a big item on my to do list, and gone on a run.

1.9 miles

around 18 minutes

I'd post my tracker screenshot but I accidentally hit "Finished" with .3 still to go. Next time!

What I have to get used to in long-distance is that I'm no longer running for speed. I have to find a slower pace, even if it's something I'm not happy with, in order to go further and longer.

I also haven't invested in a good pair of running headphones yet so I struggle a lot with keeping earbuds in my ears. I'd say about 70% of my run I'm messing around with them, but I run so much easier with music! I've asked for a good arm band to hold my iPhone for my birthday so maybe my next purchase will be matching athletic head phones.

In addition to workouts I'll also be changing my diet. No soda, very little candy, minimal processed carbs, no dessert (except froyo!). So far today I've had yogurt for breakfast and a bowl of carrots/broccoli/grapes/strawberry after my run. We'll see how long this lasts. Luckily our chef usually prepares relatively healthy food at the house and if not, we've always got the salad bar and yogurt in the fridge!

I have the feeling people aren't going to be interested in reading my workout and eat habits every day so I might start a side tab that keeps track of my half-marathon adventure. Not that many people follow this blog in the first place!

Happy Tuesday!

so,

For a rather long time I have been dissatisfied with my fitness and tonight I have officially decided to make a real change.

My 8 week half marathon training begins tomorrow.

I'm tired of feeling like I have no energy.

I'm tired of wishing I was in better shape.

I'm tired of looking at myself in the mirror and being disappointed.

I will be in control and determined and focused. There is nothing, except for a few lousy finals, that stand between me and my goal.

That is all. Hold me accountable!

What's in Your Purse?

I've always wondered what some women carry in their massive oversize slouchy purses and totes. I recently acquired a lovely springy kelly green basket weave purse that is just the right size for everything. It carries all my necessities and even a cardigan or a pair of sandals for weather changes. Here's a fun little segment I like to call: "What's In Your Purse Right Now, Kate?"

There you have it. Welcome to my life. Besides the basics (wallet, checkbook, keys, iPhone, sunglasses) I carry:

-Essie Nail Varnish in "Peach Daquiri"- It's been on my toes since the day I bought it. Love!

-Nivea "A Kiss of Flavor" Strawberry Tinted Lip Balm: light-weight and tasty with a hint of red.

-Trader Joe's "Enrich" Moisturizer... says it's for face, but I use it everywhere for ashy emergencies!

-Mom's Cosmetics Brand pressed powder. I tend to get shiny after 3:00 pm and you never know who you will meet in those 3:30 RPTS classes!

-My Kindle, Alice. She is like my third child.. (the first are Spike and Dinah)

Not pictured: a Bigelow tea packet, generally Green Tea with Pomegranate or Mint Black tea! I ask for hot water at the campus coffee shop (free!) and brew my own tea while I study!

I'm interested to know what you've got hiding in your bag.. Mine is rather generic, though I know young mothers must have some goodies!

weekend update with Kate

Alright, so a bit has happened since Thursday.

On Thursday my sorority hosted its first annual Anchorman, a male beauty pageant showcasing 12 gentlemen elected by their men's organizations to compete in talent/formal wear/question and answer pageant for the title of Anchorman 2012, along with some sweet prizes. The night was a fantastic first try, albeit there were a few technical problems with the sound. So that took up my Thursday evening, after which I moved on to my second item...

Thursday night, Ryan and I drove home to Dallas so he could get his hair cut and I could visit my parents and bring a load of clothes home! It was just a quick trip home, less than 24 hours, but something I desperately needed! You may already know that I have been having some difficulty in changing my college major. Well, call me crazy, but I received a sign while there.

While putting away some books I had brought home, I conveniently found my Horticulture Department Curriculum Handbook and sat down to flip through it. I found a few science majors in Horticulture I had forgotten all about, one being my official new and final major,

Bachelor of Science Horticulture, Fruit and Vegetable Production and Management

Working in nature and with plants is a deep love of mine that I just discovered in college, and while I love Accounting, it's just not something I could see myself enjoying studying, and above all else, my parents have always told me to follow my heart and study something I am passionate about.

With the massive popularity of organics and the revival of do-it-yourself gardening, I can see the fruit and veggie industry going crazy over the next few years. It's also something that will never become irrelevant and growing techniques have been rather steady for the last 20 years. I love the idea of being constantly surrounded by life and spending my future discovering the wonders and beauty of one of God's creations I feel is often overlooked.

SO! I created a new college schedule to fit that study track, yadda yadda, had wonderful discussions with my parents about my future, and then headed home Friday night!

Saturday brought a day full of Aggie Traditions and and excitement. After almost THREE years of construction, our beautiful Memorial Student Center finally re-opened! Ryan and I got to wander a bit and I'll post photos when the crowds die down and I can get good shots. We also attended a touching memorial called Muster, held on the 21st of April every year. It is a ceremony where the names of Aggies who passed in the last year are called out, and for each, members of the ceremony who knew them answer "Here" to show they are not forgotten and their legacy lives on through our love. A lit candle is held by a friend or family member and the flame is passed throughout our auditorium until each name is read. It's an honored tradition that A&M has been carrying for years and years, and one of my absolute favorites!

Today I am bouncing from meeting to meeting and getting some homework and cleaning up taken care of before my busy three weeks! My first final is this Wednesday which I am PSYCHED about because that means the end of my Political Science class. Whoop!

I really didn't have time to blog about this.. not sure why I decided I did.

Happy weekend!

registration woes

SPOILER ALERT! This is essentially a rant.

For those of you who are attending large universities, please sympathize;

It's registration season.

Nothing gets a migraine going for me like registering for a new semester. It seems that no matter how hard I study or succeed in classes, the university never lets me have an easy registration. Each semester it has been a complete nightmare. This one especially. I am in the process of turning my BA Horticulture/Business Minor/Event Planning Certification into a BBA Accounting/Horticulture Minor. It's a mouthful and apparently the most difficult transfer in the world. It's crazy. I feel the headache coming on. I'm also trying to register for summer courses at my community college where they have placed a HOLD on my registration status. Evidently the school at which I am CURRENTLY AN ONLINE STUDENT has not received my application. It's ridiculous. Did I mention they don't turn down any applicants? It's an open application.

Meanwhile, I'm contemplating whether I could still get a job post-graduation with a Horticulture degree and I'm panicking that I won't enjoy business classes and will slowly drown in drab business casual.

Amongst all this chaos, I am preparing for my sorority's spring philanthropy event happening this evening. I fortunately volunteered to be a team captain which means extra responsibility. Yay.

I'm sure there are people out there saying "Girlfriend, just let go and put it in God's hands. He'll take care of it for you." But let me tell you Girlfriend, registration is something He won't even get involved in. IT'S THAT BAD.

Pats on the back and silent encouraging looks greatly appreciated!

ahem. LADIES:

I have always had a special place in my heart for feminism. Credit to my wonderful parents, I have always been conscious of the negative images of women presented to me by television, advertising, and other media sources. In addition to unrealistic physical ideals, we're assaulted with marginalization of women's ability to be successful in politics and the workforce. Like most girls, I've been affected by negative body image and desire to be "prettier, skinnier, more popular, more like the other girls" and fortunately come out of the other side without much damage to my self-image and desire to succeed and be independent. Something about hearing women discuss the media and its negative influences on younger girls and their perception of self-worth and power really hits home for me. Thus, this blog post had to be written.

This evening I watched a film on campus called Miss Representation.

It did many things for me.

1. Reminded me that I play a vital role in altering the perception of young women in my community as a leader in an organization that is typically viewed as self-absorbed, ditzy, or a "social club" full of party girls.

2. Refreshed my desire to be a successful, independent, influential role model for girls and women at my university, in Delta Gamma, and even back home.

3. Made me want to be active in a women's rights organization.

4. Rekindled my love for the band Metric.

I would highly recommend every woman watch this film and share its message with the younger and more impressionable girls in their life. It has some language and images that definitely aren't appropriate for girls under 13 but the themes are extremely important to communicate to girls in the middle school-high school-college age range.

Remember:

"You can't be what you can't see." -Marian Wright Edelman

Be a respectable, intelligent role model for the younger girls (and guys) around you. They need your influence in their lives to combat the self-obsessed idiocy they see each day on television!

announcement

This lovely lady is my best friend in the entire world, Jill.

That is Jill's older sister Leah. She's getting married in August.

And THIS is the route (roughly) Jill and I will be taking to Leah's Northern California wedding. That's right folks, we're taking a BEST FRIEND TRANS-AMERICAN ROAD TRIP! (whoop!)

We decided it's time that we see the sites the western United States has to offer. Hopefully our journey will take us through Roswell, the Grand Canyon, to see the Redwoods, to Yellowstone, and wherever else we can fit in our drive. We will spend (around) two weeks on our voyage, documenting each moment through various media and spending countless dollars on gasoline.

I am especially excited because this is the acceptable substitute my parents have allowed me because they couldn't get on board with my rural Peruvian excursion. Maybe next year.

Either way, I am BEYOND excited to live out of a car and explore countless wonders with Jill by my side. If anybody has visited somewhere astounding in the general direction we're heading, let me know! We have no idea where to visit and would love input.

I have some more news to share, but I will wait until tomorrow. On a related note, life is really great right now. Busy and at some points out of control, but really awesome. I love where I'm at. Thank the LAWD!

Happy Tuesday!

under constuction

don't mind the mess while I play around with layouts!

the return

Life can get hard sometimes. Mine has been a little tricky for the last few weeks/months. In the grand scheme of things, I am so blessed and incredibly happy, but lately I am finding it more difficult to be my normal cheery self.

I am generally the most productive and satisfied with my life when I've made a list of short term goals and focuses so carry with me throughout the days. This little action usually helps clear my mind of all the distraction so I can get back on track with myself.

I was about to create one for this season in my life when I realized the only vital item on my list, as well as the only potent cure for my issues, was to surrender my fears, worries, stresses, and plans to God. No list I can write out can ease my anxieties more. No goals I set can illuminate my path better. Nothing matters except getting back on track with my spiritual life, something that has been seriously slacking recently.

My hope is to share my journey and be held accountable in part by my blog. Few people read this, especially now that I haven't been posting for over a month, but the reminder that I've declared this renewed focus 'aloud' is enough for me to jump back in the swing of things.

Don't really have much to say tonight.

Have a wonderful Tuesday!

ta ta!

I'm in an incredibly strange phase in my life at the moment.. It's unclear to me right now whether this will inspire an onslaught of inspiration and new posts or a hiatus. So as of now, I'm going to go ahead and declare hiatus.

I need to spend some time away from the virtual world.

See all of you beautiful folks outside of the blogosphere!

ameowzing!

The last few days I have been especially health conscious, waking up early to run and bit and trying not to stuff my face with too much crap at meal times. I also bought a pair of ankle/wrist weights to wear around the house and on small errands. Even if I'm not making much progress, at least I'm trying!

In other news, I've been playing with the awesome settings of the camera I finally got! What better models to play with than my kittens, right?

Dinah in all her sunny glory.

Spike being her intense self.

meow.

I love cats, a lot. Most people know that about me. Cats are low-maintenance, squishy, lazy, and adorable. I don't understand why anybody could hate them, but to each their own I suppose.