drawing myself (spoilers: or a dinosaur!)

The other day, Jesse showed me his self-portrait... and it was amazing.

So, after crying for a little while at my own lack of art skills... I decided to draw myself!

...it didn't exactly go as planned.

As you can see, the facial ressemblance is totally there, especially in the teeth. (This is referring to the unfortunate period of time in which I had braces. My mouth was unfortunately pointy because of the weight of metal, and saliva frequently dripped from my glamourously coloured elastics... when they weren't snapping in people's faces, that is. SEXY TIMES.) Also, the butterfly wings. (I can see myself as a child wearing these.) Obviously, this is also a one-of-a-kind creation, which also fits my personality and style. (How many winged dinosaurs have you seen lately? Probably none. How many Tatianas wearing cat ears have you seen? Also probably none. There is some margin for error here, but it's Infinitesimal. ("Nothing really touches, bro, just kinda floats...")

The worst part, though? I was babysitting while I drew this (we were having an Art Time. I did not just abandon the poor child to fend for herself in order to create this masterpiece) and the girl's reaction, after looking at it dubiously for a few minutes: "Well, you did say you hadn't drawn in a while..."

Sigh. Apparently I should not rely on my drawings to get me by.

If you drew yourself, either seriously or in jest, how would you do it?

nothing is cuter than cats

Yesterday, I discovered a new place to add to my list of "Tatiana's Ideal Volunteer Positions"- the SPCA.

Why?

All you have to do is pet cats!

Recently, I've felt a little bit superfluous. Witness my blood donating (which was accurate in this case too- witness all the scratches I recieved) and my library volunteering and my reading of classics- these might not world-shaking actions, but they're my contribution to society. I'd been thinking of volunteering more, and the SPCA is right near my school... so, I thought, why not?

Plus, I'm already a cat expert/future crazy cat lady, so I might as well share my expertise! This may seem like an idle boast but if you saw the number of cat books I read when I was little... (I even named all the cats on my posters. And cat pictures I saw in books. That is dedication.)

Regardless, when I showed up, I wasn't quite sure what to expect. At first I felt as thought I was cheating them (let's face it, as enjoyable as petting cats is, it's not the usual amount of work I associate with volunteering) but then I realised: it is my duty to help these cats NOT become like Darcy... aka: apt to run and hide from everyone, meowing constantly in a sad tone for no apparent reason, time-travelling aside. (This is a Serious Mission.)

...also they were just so cute and cuddly and omg how could anyone not want to play with them? (Kitten love!) I could literally feel my heart slowing down. (Which sounds vaguely corpselike... but I mean it in a good way.)  It was better than meditation! (Whenever I try to meditate I get distracted and usually start thinking about food. And then I make myself hungry and am even more distracted and just give up the entire endeavor.)

I can't even post photos because the cuteness quotient would be too overwhelming and I don't want your screen to explode

I did, however, feel sorry for the people who encountered me in my visit to the grocery store directly afterwards. I was so covered in fur that I could have been mistaken for a yeti... but don't worry, I tried to stay away from the produce. (People with cat allergies: I apologise.)

book lover problems

It's a fairly innocuous question, right? "What are you reading?" It shouldn't be that hard to answer... but it is.

I'm serious. This is actually a problem in my life right now. (Okay, so I could just stop reading in public... but then I'd have to Talk To People, which is an even bigger problem.) I'm never quite sure how to answer it. For example, the other day I was reading Save Me The Waltz. When I...

a) answer in a generic manner, such as "Oh, it's a romance", people inevitably ask for more details. I'm never sure why this is, because no one ever reads the books I do unless I have previously forced them to... so they never know what I'm talking about... which leads me to

b) give a detailed synopsis, such as  "Oh, it's a romance set during the 1920s and it describes all the facets of their lives and how he drank too much and how she wanted to be a ballerina", people's eyes inevitably start to glaze over after a couple of seconds and they sidle away with pretexts such as washing their llama. (Which leads me to wonder why they even asked...)

c) compare it to another book, such as "It's similar to The Great Gatsby!", people either don't know that book, so then I have to explain it too (it's a vicious cycle!) or, if they do know it, ask "How?" and I, being already frazzled by the resulting stress of choosing one of these answers, can't quite remember why I chose to compare it.

Sometimes by the time I've decided which tactic to choose, the conversation has already moved on and all my hard work was wasted. (However, at least this means I have less of a chance of making a fool of myself... so, again, pros and cons.) It's even worse when someone I don't know well asks me this, because then I also have to wonder: "Are we going to be friends? If so, I should probably moderate what I say now..." (And not confess my shameful obsession with Georgette Heyer's Regency romances...)

How do you answer this? (Or do you just not read?)

On a slightly similar note (the Tatiana-Wants-To-Avoid-People note) this is my current manifesto song.

This will sound like a typical Teenager Statement, but I really like most of Mother Mother's songs- the lyrics really Speak To My Soul. (I'm both parodying myself and being entirely serious.) Have you found any bands like that lately?

However, I love you all, especially those of you who have helped me with my S-Trip Scholarship. Thank you so much! For those of you who still want to help by supporting, commenting or tweeting, you still have a few days left.

Happy Thursday, blog ninjas!

what I'd like to be known for

Do you ever see connections within the TV shows you're watching? Or the conversations you're having? Or the books you're reading? I don't mean just mentioning the same thing to several people, or watching only crime shows. The connections I'm thinking of are subtler, harder to trace. A character in one novel might prefer an orange dress; a friend will happen to mention that she's been buying a lot of orange clothes. At first it seems coincidental, but as the events keep piling up, they seem to be pointing you further and further in the same direction.

This is the way I've been feeling lately. This quote, and others like it, have been appearing in snippets everywhere:

“One day, you’re seventeen and you’re planning for someday. 

And then quietly, without you ever really noticing, someday is today. 

And then someday is yesterday. And this is your life.”

― John Green

This terrifies me.

I feel like it's a warning: stop thinking you can plan anything. Stop thinking you have time to waste. (Which is a good thing... but I panic, and then can do nothing.) Do you ever have times when you feel paralysed, caught in time, waiting for something to happen? I feel as though my life has been put on pause, and I'm not quite sure why.

For this reason, this list, from Moorea Seal's list project, was surprisingly difficult for me to write, because I don't know what I want.

(is this clear enough? if not, please tell me so I can change it for next time)

On the whole, this seems fairly comprehensive... it also makes me wonder, am I already some of these things? If people who know me read this, would they laugh at just how off the mark I am? (I hope not.)

One notable exception (in my mind, at least) to this list was smart. I have been known for being smart my entire life, and I'm so tired of it. Being known as 'the smart girl' is exhausting and, in a way, dehumanising. You're not supposed to have weaknesses. You're supposed to be the one who has the answers, who doesn't care what other people think of you because you're just the brain... but that is not all I am.

What about you? What do you want to be known for?

home & energy (in lists!)

...and if that title didn't entice you, I'm not sure what could. Doesn't it sound like a boring radio ad for an energy-efficient fridge? ( (I know, I'm such a saleswoman. However, at least I'm better than one of my friends, who once tried to convince me NOT to buy something from her for a fundraiser. It's a wonder she managed to raise any money... although given my own experiences, I should be more sympathetic.)

Or perhaps it's imploring you to turn off the lights in your house, so I don't have to pop up and do it myself. (Us ninjas prefer the darkness. We're also very environmentally conscious.)

However (my graceful segue word in every occasion, from essays to awkward conversations) that is not actually what this post is about. I have no interest in fridges (other than the fact that they hold food! And food is good! Yay for food!)- today, I'm actually sharing two more of my lists from Moorea Seal's list project.

Week 12: things that feel like home. 

...so it's pretty easy to see that, for the most part, feeling at home means being alone. In the quiet. In the dark. (Again, this can all be explained by my inherent ninja-ness.)

Week 18: ways I'm energized. 

Of course coffee is the first on the list! (Priorities.) Funny how several of these ended up being similar to the previous list, despite having been done weeks apart.

What makes you feel at home? What energises you?

Also: The Great Gatsby comes out on Friday. Excuse me while I pass out from excitement. (NoI'mnotobsessed,whywouldyousaythat?)

university woes

As a soon-to-go-to university student (come on now. Admit that sounds far better than mere "grade 12 student") finances are a big concern. To be completely honest, mostly I try not to think about it. (Popcorn is cheap, right? And apples? If those were my two main food groups, I could survive!) 

...that is, when I'm not applying to scholarships. 

Did any of you apply to scholarships when you went off to school? How many essays did you write? (Honestly, my convictions on such varied subjects as Timing in Jane Austen and Worker's Rights are beginning to astound even me. Hopefully the judges feel the same!) Honestly, even though I'm a good writer, it's exhausting. (Although far better than the essays I have to write for French class... despite my growing ability to make things up when I have nothing to say, there is REALLY nothing I have to say on Agriculture in 18th-Century Quebec.) 

Also, I am of fairly average physical appearance. Meaning... I am neither tall enough to apply for the Tall Girl Scholarship, nor short enough to apply for the Short Girl scholarship. (These are really things.) Even more average, I have no desire to belong to a nudist colony... YES. There is a scholarship for people who want to join a nudist colony. WHY. (Seriously, I don't understand this mainly because there are so many gorgeous clothes out there. Why waste the opportunity?) 

However, I have still managed to find a few to apply to. My most recent one is the S-Trip Scholarship, in which I am even able to win a trip! (Let's face it, travelling is just the best.) 

(And, well... I just look so good doing it, too. Always a consideration.) 

However, I need supporters. I just need six more people... and I have only eight days left... and I'd really appreciate if some of you could help me out! All you need to do is sign up and say that you support me. (Yay for clicking a link!) Here's my lovely profile!

Thanks for dropping by, and happy Monday! 

you know you're overthinking it when

I was never the type of girl who had imaginary friends. To be honest, even at five, I thought the idea was... kinda silly. (Why make up a friend when you could play with your Beanie Babies?... okay, so maybe my logic was a little faulty, seeing as it amounts to the same thing... but I was five okay?) However, the older I get, the more I find myself taking refuge in imaginary worlds and, if not pretending that their characters attend my every move, imagining that they do exist. (Somewhere. Parallel universes totally exist. Just watch Doctor Who.)

My thought process goes something like this...
-omg I love this character!
-why do they not exist in real life to marry me or to be my best friend
-...let's face it, I'd probably be too antisocial to hang out with them anyway (...while I'm confessing)
-BUT THAT'S OKAY, I can pretend
-next time I make cookies, I will totally make extra for them and eat them (calories don't count after midnight or when they are consumed for imaginary friends)

...I think we can agree I might be a little obsessive. My current read: Dracula. (I know. I'm a teenage girl reading about vampires. How very cliché.) Why do I love it so much, you might ask? Because of the characters. (Again, no, I am not in love with Dracula.) I find them very vivid; I can totally picture Jonathan Harker as that quiet shy kid in hipster glasses and cardigans who you later discover has a black belt in karate. Or John Seward as the know-it-all who everyone's in love with.

Something else I love is when I find an actor who's played in several shows or movies that I enjoy. Right now, Jonny Lee Miller tops that list (having played an antique dealer who kills vampires, Sherlock Holmes, and Mr. Knightley, a love interest in a Jane Austen adaptation... swoon) with Billie Piper coming a close second (Rose, my favourite Doctor Who companion, as well as Fanny, the main character in a different Jane Austen)... really, if the two of them were together in a show my heart might explode from fangirl excitement.

Does anyone else ever do any of these things? If you've read Dracula, what were your impressions?

Happy Sunday, blog ninjas!

what a wonderful world

Sometimes, it's important just to remember the little things that make you happy. (Wow. I am the last person who I ever thought would say that. Let's face it, most of the time I walk around thinking "I HATE YOU ALL STAY AWAYYY FROM ME MORTALS") It's just... nice. Relaxing. And while I certainly wouldn't advise doing this all the time (might be difficult to keep serious in a business meeting if you're thinking about rainbow cupcakes) it's definitely the perfect thing to do when you have nothing else to do! (Aka French class. Or, as I like to call it, that space of time wherein we have no work ever.) Here are some little things that make me smile.

(source)

...This song. 

Chills.

(not my photo, if anyone knows the link thank you!) 

Is this not adorable? I'm pretty sure whenever I drink coffee I look like a cross between the extra-shot illustration and the Energizer bunny! (except with better hair...)

(source)

Right now that's Dracula... so it's neither new to me nor to the world, but I still enjoy it! 

(credit Kaja Słojewska)

Oh my. Florence + The Machine... in The Great Gatsby... all this and heaven too. (And it's actually coming out in two weeks! I've never been this excited for a movie before...)

(source)

Let's face it... all of us here are probably guilty of this. But it's just so fun!

(credit Chocolate-Covered Katie)

Chocolate Mug Cake. I actually haven't eaten any in a while, but the mere thought of it sends me onto a chocolate high! (Go make it now. My recipe is the best.)

(source)

Especially when there's tea and a cuddly blanket involved. (Or a cuddly person!) 

What are some things that make you happy? 

Oh, and always remember...

(source)

Happy Thursday, blog ninjas!

in which I talk about how I did nothing

Welcome to this week's edition of... Friday Letters! Are you surprised that I'm actually doing a similar post two weeks in a row? To liven things up, let's guess why. Is it...
a) because I like doing this linkup? or...
b) because I have really done nothing this week that is noteworthy and so I resort to imaginary conversations for blog fodder?

Yeah so... it was mostly b). But this is fun!

Dear World: I'm sorry for doing absolutely nothing this week. I'll try harder next week. (...LIES.) But, as they say...

(source)

Dear Chemistry Test: why did you have to be right before lunch? I think I failed some of your questions just because I was thinking too much about food...

Dear The Office: ...why are you ruining my life. Seriously. Pam and Jim are the TV couple I have looked up to my entire childhood as an example of sanity and utter adorableness... they can't break up. I'm begging you.

(source)

Dear Jesse: thank you for making me laugh so hard with your latest tea video! And for making me feel that I was semi-having a conversation with you and so was only semi-pathetic and antisocial. (Semi is about as good as it gets.) Loveee youuu, tea/DW/loner/too-many-things-to-count-buddy!

Dear Healthy Brownies:

(her photo, not mine)

Thank you for being so delicious! When I eat you, I feel both satisfied and healthy... so yay! (The recipe can be found here- I would definitely recommend you try them!)

Dear Weather: make up your mind. Are you in a good mood? (aka sun and warmth) or a bad mood? (aka rain and wind) So far you seem to be tending towards the latter, but since YOU. CHANGE YOUR MIND. LIKE A GIRL. CHANGES CLOTHES (#retrosongmoment) I really can't tell what's going on.

Happy Friday, blog ninjas!

varied readings

Some days I feel like my sole purpose in life is to turn off the lights.

I don't even mean this in a deep, metaphorical way. I literally mean that I walk around my house (and at school too!) turning off the lights that everyone else has forgotten to turn off. (My second purpose is tripping over invisible objects so that everyone can laugh at me. I also minor in closing windows that everyone else has forgotten about.)

With all this stress, it's no wonder that sometimes I just like to curl up with a nice book. (Okay, make that always. If I could spend my entire life eating- I actually have a batch of these brownies in the oven right now!- reading and drinking tea, I would be perfectly happy.) Here's some of my latest picks!

1- Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens.

I mentioned this book in another recent post but, since I'm still loving and reading it, I thought it deserved another mention. Charles Dickens is one of my favourite authors for several reasons, but top of the list his lovely prose (one of the many reasons I was born in the wrong century is because I actually enjoy reading long descriptions!) and his carefully drawn characters- what other author has a character constantly described as a steam engine? (That sounded better in my head... and on the page.)

2- We The Living by Ayn Rand.

This book... just thinking about it again makes me feel sad. It's one of those stories that you start and that you know it's going to end badly, but you keep reading on the off chance that the characters will be drawn out of their deep pit of despair. (Does anyone else do this?)
...Needless to say, this was not a book I'd recommend if you're already feeling down. (Or happy, because then you will feel down for sure.)
But I figure, if I'm still thinking about it a week later... it's a good book.

3- This Side of Paradise by F. Scott Fitzgerald

This book makes me even more excited to go to university! It's filled with descriptions of their long discussions of literature and their sumptuous all-night parties... so it might be wish fulfillment, but a girl can dream, right?

And... that's that! (Yay for classic literature!) What have you been reading lately? )And if you liked my selections, feel free to friend me on Goodreads or Twitter to see what I'm reading next!) Any tasty recipes to go along with it?

 

 

letters to the universe

Dear Death Cab for Cutie: omg I love you except you just make me want to cry and omg never again will I listen to you at the library because the tears are a tad embarassing...

Dear Spring: where are you? We have had one sunny day in the past month. ONE. And today it's hailing. Get over here soon before I decide to move to another warmer country! #notimpressed (Okay I'm not altogether sure why you would be perturbed by such a threat... but still. Be very scared.)

Dear Pakistani Tea: at least I have you to comfort me. You're cooking on the stove and I can smell you all the way upstairs... mmmm. If only I had a warm fire to cuddle by... or someone to cuddle with...

Dear Kitties: I guess I have you... except the two of you take up my entire bed. And have also covered it in fur. Thanks so much.

Also, why do you eat mango? Off my plate? Are you really a cat?

Good thing you're cute. Or I would toss you outside. (Okay no I don't want to go outside... maybe just lock you into the bathtub. No wait you like licking the bathtub... I give up)

Dear Charles Dickens: okay so you might be dead (but you live on in Doctor Who! so it's all good... I think my new life ambition is to be featured in Doctor Who. WHY DO I DO THIS TO MYSELF) but your books are amazing... plans for the day= made.

Dear The Fountainhead: you on the other hand I could do without. Although I admire your concepts... I could have done with some shorter speeches... (aka, ones less than five pages long) However I hear your brother-book Atlas Shrugged has one that is a full 30 000 words, so I should simply be grateful I escaped reading that... 

Seriously though. A character is a character. A philosophical concept is a philosophical concept. The two should not mix.

Happy Friday, blog ninjas!

essentials & spring cleaning

...it's snowing again.

And since this is the fourth of April, and not the first, you can deduct that this is not an April Fool's.

I'm pretty sure that the universe is paying me back for all the times I pleaded for snow by giving me some now... exactly when I'm ready for spring.

I JUST WANT TO WEAR SPRING DRESSES. Is that really so much to ask? -sob-

But anyway. You did not come here to read my rants about snow. (Or maybe you did. Maybe you, too, think I need payback... but really, I already missed a concert. (No, I'm still not over it.) Isn't that enough?

...now I'm really done.

This post is really about the 52 Lists project. Every week this year, a new prompt will be posted. Although I haven't done all of them (and probably won't- I tend to get distracted from any form of bloggerly organisation) I thought it might be fun to do a few!

First off: Ways to Cleanse for Spring (Week 10). 

What kinds of spring cleaning do you do? The one I'm really trying to work on right now is no. 3... I've been eating so much chocolate & other miscellaneous junk recently... /turns into a gingerbread ninja for realz

And secondly: My Essentials (Week 11)

Hopefully this one is big enough for you to read! As you can see, there are many essentials in my life, some contradictory and some entirely abstract. What are some of yours?

Happy Friday, blog ninjas!

the trials and tribulations of library stalking

...or, more accurately, What Not to Do when trying to creep someone at the library. (Come on now. I'm sure you've all done this. Or wanted to do this. Close enough...) No worries, I'm here to help!

1- Giggling is not subtle. No but really.

2- Hope that your target is sitting in a well-populated area... and not in the most awkward spot beside the dictionaries. I mean really, why sit there anyway? Don't you know that people might want to come... -coughcough- investigate you? Cut me some slack here.

3- If you want a subtle phone, do not get a Blackberry. I love my phone, but I must admit that the keys are a little loud, and therefore not conducive to silent stalking. (Or silent usage while in class. These are important things to keep in mind!) In this respect (and this respect only!) touch-screens are preferable.

4- Hope that your target is sitting near interesting books. The aforementioned dictionaries do not make for good 'Oh, yes, I'm fascinated by this book and I'm totally staring at it and not your head' material. Nor do books such as "Our Aging Problem: how to take care of your elderly parents" or "Fortune 500: the revised list!" Try to apply no. 1 while looking at those titles, I dare you. (To say nothing of the sex manuals that were also lying nearby... Yes, I am that immature.)

5- Have a friend nearby. This way, if all else fails, you can run up to them and pretend that you were looking for them The Entire Time. "Omg, you've lost so much weight that I thought you were hiding in the shelf!" Convincing, right?

...or you could just wait to run into the target while walking down the stairs. That also works.

random travel musings

So here we have it: the conclusion of this series. Did I actually learn anything in my travels, or am I still the same silly girl obsessed with perfectly painted nails?

...Yes to the latter half (my nails were bare the entire trip and it felt as though there was a Piece Missing from my Soul)... but I'd like to think that I'm a tiny bit more cultured. (Looking at the Mona Lisa must count for something, right?) Either way, here are some thoughts that occured to me along the way!

-I could not permanently live with roommates in the same room. Much as I love them, I do not have the patience to deal with anyone else's mess (let's face it, I can barely deal with my own)... yet another reason I have to get an apartment-style residence at university!

here we are, all cute and jet-lagged

-Food in Europe is much more expensive than food around here, as well as coffee being in tiny servings. (You know a small at Tim Hortons? Think half that amount, for three times the price.)

-...but the boys are really really cute #hormones
so it works out.

-The cars in Europe are just SO MUCH CUTER than anything you see around here. Really.

That is the most adorable thing I've ever seen, give it to me now and note also the cute little scooter

-However walking across crosswalks was terrifying... you basically had to put out a hand and hope that no one would hit you. (Rome earns a special mention for this... needless to say, my loving friends made me walk first every time.)

-What do Italians have against toilet seats? It's one little piece of porcelain, and it makes life so much easier. I lived in fear of falling into the toilet every day.

-We heard much about the "pique-poquets"...seriously. Every. Single. Day.

Say it in a French accent. You won't regret it.

-France had so. Many. Sephoras. (And MACs too!) There was even one in the train station! (Might as well look good while travelling... you never know when you'll meet the love of your life!... why yes, I watch a lot of movies, why do you ask?)

...and that's that. It's strange; the more I travel, the more I desire to travel. Once I see a tiny piece of the world- and really, in the grand scheme of things, I've visited no more than a sliver of the map- I can hardly wait to explore other exotic locales. (The places I want to go... that could be a post all on its own!) Unfortunately, I face that great dilemna; a lack of funds. (What kinds of discoveries could exist were money not an object?)

Oh well, I might be a broke student right now, but that won't last forever. Soon enough, I'll be a famous author (feel free to name-drop and say you know me), wearing gorgeous clothes (that is a definite requirement for any job I may hold in the future... and actually a primary reason I decided not to become a paleontologist) and free to jet-set all over the world and call it research! (Uh-oh. You now know my master plan. Don't tell!)

What's your current dream?

sunny day confessions

It's actually gorgeous outside today, so this title isn't wishful thinking!

-It still feels bizarre to be blogging under my real name... but I like it.

-Even more bizarre? I am incapable of pronouncing my own name. I love hearing other people say it, but the way I say it just sounds stilted. (This makes introducing myself difficult...)

-Older ladies often tell me I'm gorgeous but I rarely hear this from people my own age. This confirms my suspicion that I was born in the wrong age.

-Even my mother has now accepted I will be a Crazy Cat Lady... just look at what she gave me for Valentine's Day!

(Hint: it wasn't the clothes... Also, apology for the slightly creepy smile, blame it on the awkward changeroom lighting!)

-The thought of prom is a bit dispiriting right now. Everyone's talking about their dresses, dates, etc, and all I can think is a) I have no idea where to look for my dress b) I'm probably going to be the only one without a date (in a graduating class of ten people, this is not an exaggeration) and c) what if, when I find my dress, it doesn't fit?


-This weekend is going to be a total Chocolate/Junk In General Overload... but whatever, it's so delicious and it's just one weekend, right? (Except it's three days instead of two... oh well, living in a chocolate buzz makes the extra calories worth it!) (Hm... maybe this is why I have no prom date? And why I worry about fitting into a dress? Shhhh)

-I'm scared of putting gas into the van by myself. I'm worried that, just as I put in the nozzle, someone will leap out and kidnap me.

-I'm addicted to this line of body products.

They all smell absolutely luscious- like candied fruit and dessert and everything nice- and I can't stop using them! (Thank you once again, Mum and Sephora.)

What do you have to confess?

confessions from the heart

1. Wearing these shoes makes me feel kinda gangsta.

(and yes, I realise that as a white girl who screams at spiders, that is not an appropriate thing to say)

2. For the upcoming Emilie Autumn concert, Erika and I are planning to look like, in her words, "crack-whore faeries"... so be prepared for some pretty crazy photos!

3. I REALLY want this foundation.

source

However, every single time I try to buy it either online or in-store, it's out of stock. I think the universe is trying to tell me something...

4. I also REALLY want this palette.

 source

My birthday is coming up, world... feel free to send it my way! More seriously, though, I think I'll simply not buy any neutrals for a while, then when I run out, buy it.

4. I wish people would mail me letters (or presents... I'm not picky!). I think it's an art that's been lost within my generation, and that saddens me. Is there an official letter day during which we can all share addresses and mail each other things?

5. I don't understand why chip bags contain so few chips.

Like, seriously? (For the record, these aren't even my chips. These are Kori's, so it's ALL HER FAULT.)

6. My right eye is slightly less open than my left eye, all the time... and I hate it. I can't make my eyes match, and I'm really insecure about it.

7. Despite the fact that Friday's snow day caused many accidents and that no one appreciated it except for our town's minority of highschool students... I'm hoping for another one tomorrow. (Yes. When it comes to days off school, I am very selfish.)

8. I can't do a messy bun, and for this reason (amongst many others) I feel that I fail at being a girl.

9.  I'm currently addicted to this song.

(Amongst many others. My friends are kind enough to lend me CDs, and I thus discover much lovely music!)

10. David's Tea no longer sells my favourite tea (Ice Cream Cake)... I discovered that this morning and am still upset.

And that's it for this week, dearling ninjas! (and yes, that is spelt intentionally incorrectly. Because I can never remember any of the lovely and educated words I know, I am forced to invent my own) What do you have to confess?

zia vs. the world

...just accept that I'll probably be right and accept this as truth, kayy?

1) Our Perfect Mistake by The Wombats is a great song to go running to

2) Treadmills are hateful nuisances

3) There are too many good TV shows out there, they're taking over my life (New Girl, Vampire Diaries... Doctor Who, Bomb Girls... Sherlock, The Office... sighh)

4) As is Goodreads (it's like an online bookstore except I can't spend any money, what's not to love)

5) Life would be better if I could carry my tea/coffee/hot chocolate around everywhere

6) Before transitioning from a cute child into a semi-rational human being, everyone goes through this amoeba state in grades 6-8 (and some people never leave it)

7) Instead of better bombs, someone should invent calorie-free chocolate

8) Lana Del Rey has lovely songs and also bizarre ones

9) Peplum shirts and dresses are not flattering on anyone

10) Leggings are stylish and comfortable, what's not to love

11) These teas are possibly the best thing in my life right now

Merry Cranberry. It's like drinking winter; spicy and sweet and oh-so-nice.

Birthday Cake. It has sprinkles and ice cream. I don't think any other explanation is needed.

Forever Nuts. It's pink. Again, what else to say? (I reviewed it here!)

a hairbreadth of happiness (or, work)

I complain about work all the time, but sometimes there are just little things that make me smile and brighten my day, so I thought, for once, I'd share those instead! (And wow, long and ungrammatical sentence alert. Obviously today's writing club didn't do me any favours.)

• the little girl who said to her grandma, looking at me, "Oh, that girl is so pretty!"
• when an actual good song plays on the radio (mostly it sucks)
• the joy I feel when I go shopping and realise I'm not the one trapped behind the counter (muahaha)
• the cute boy who watched me (in a non-Edward-Cullen way) and smiled at me the entire time 
• the little girl (couldn't have been older than three) who complimented me on my makeup and noted that my nails matched (which I hadn't even noticed- future stylist to the stars?) 
• an excited explanation of hockey (someone had walked in wearing a jersey and my current customer explained who the player was)
• joking with my coworkers
• when I put away the hangers correctly and don't spill them on the floor (shh. It's the little things.)
• the older ladies who tell me about their cats 
• the feeling I get when I look at my bank account (MONEY)

And best of all... the thought that I have less than two months left. (Insert happy dance here.) 

On another, slightly related note, in my last post I mentioned that teenage years didn't seem to be too thrilling so far.
I didn't intend for this to sound as though I was unhappy- far from it. I'm lucky in so many ways; my family situation (when the worst memory of your parents you have is of being forced to drink a glass of milk, you're pretty sheltered), my friends, my cats... (who, apparently, didn't steal my USB- it was in my pyjama pocket. Why do pj pockets exist, anyway? It seems like you're guaranteed simply to lose things in them...)

I'm just bored; sick of slow nights at work, sick of classes that I'm taking only to get a credit, sick of being in those classes with the same people I've known for years. Simply put, I'm craving change. (Unfortunately, new clothes don't quite seem to cut it, especially since I have a uniform- nor does different dessert, mainly because I'm too lazy to bake anything.)

Finally, on a completely unrelated note: TV shows are starting again! Unfortunately, this aligns perfectly with 'exam time is starting again'... at least I've already been accepted to university, so no need to worry!

(...I'm joking.)
(Mostly.)