Avett Brothers

Can we just talk for a minute about how much I'm loving The Avett Brothers lately? And this sweet, sweet song (Part 2 is the tits...that's right, I said it)

It kind of makes me want to wear a shirt of the flannel persuasion, prance around in some skinny jeans, learn how to play a keyboard and grow some sick facial hair...wait, what?

Be Kind

Let's get serious for a moment.

Since the beginning of this year, a few people I know (some quite young) have passed away. Cancer, Suicide. It really goes to show that you never know what someone else is going through. The battles and struggles raging internally. Things can be quite different behind closed doors and seemingly happy smiles. And so, you can't know what it's like. Not really anyway. You're not there in the morning when their alarm goes off, and you're not there at the end of a long day when they fall into bed at night.

Sure, some people's problems may seem small compared to your own. And, perhaps they are. Perhaps their reality is skewed. But, the thing is, it doesn't make their problems feel any less so to them.

Or, on the other hand, perhaps their problems are in fact much larger than your own. Insurmountable in their eyes. By natural design, someone's always going to have it worse than you. It's easy to feel bad. It's easy to judge. It's easy to do pretty much anything except for be that person.

Sometimes things just suck and there aren't happy endings. Sometimes the endings are just inexplicably sad - plain and simple. Sure, there can be silver linings to every scenario, but sometimes it's damn near impossible to find them.

It reminds me of that saying..."Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle."

Streaking!

Before we delve into the streaking...I was at CVS this weekend when I found this little gem. Finally, a beauty product I can get behind! Ummm, NO. Seriously, what the fuck?! Who has eyelids so dirty or greasy that plain old water and soap (or makeup remover) just won't do? Who needs these?? I'd like to meet that person. Then, I can laugh in their face, examine their eyelids with a microscope, slap them a few times and set them straight. And, "great for travel"? Oh yeah, because I'm constantly ducking into the flipping bathroom to clean my damn eyelids before I board my flight. It's just been sooooo inconvenient and embarrassing until now! 

So strange.

I know the subject line of this post probably elicits a bit of excitement. However, I'm afraid it's not the type of streaking you're thinking of. I'm talking about a pink streak in my hair bitchesss. Since I'm 29, I decided it'd be great timing to dye a piece of my hair pink! If you're wondering if that's a 'cool' thing to do at this age, the answer is most obviously yes.

I got ombre highlights a few weeks back. If you don't know what that means, it basically translates to "color gradation". You leave your roots your natural color and then get the highlights near the middle of your hair with them tapering down and being the lightest at the bottom. The girl who did mine did an ok/pretty good job, so I can't really complain...especially considering I'm pretty sure this isn't a commonly requested technique by most of her usual 60-70 year old client base.

Sooo, since I already had the blonde highlights in there, I just took a took a little chunk of blonde hair kind of under the top layer and used a sophisticated pink hair dye some cherry Kool-Aid. What what! That's right. The last time I used this special little trick to dye my hair was literally in 7th grade when I had a retainer, Keds and scrunchies were cool. Or maybe those trends were 5th grade? Perhaps 7th grade was more like Pumas and Umbro shorts? I can't remember...I was wasted the whole time...kiiiiiidding.

So anyway, you boil some water, add the Kool-Aid (I used two little packets) and mix it around. I then put it in a bowl to make it easier to dip my hair in. You'll know you're making progress if, when you spill any of the piping hot Kool-Aid, it instantly stains your countertops. Good! It's all part of the process. I'm not sure why I'm explaining all this...as if someone else is actually going to try this middle school project.

After a few minutes of having my head turned to the side and straining my neck, while my hair is resting strategically in a salad bowl, I was getting a little annoyed. So, my mom decided to help me by assembling what appears to be a little colonoscopy sack (sack pictured above) and securing it firmly to my scalp. In case you can't tell by the photo, it's some saran wrap and a chip bag clip.

The other thing I forgot to mention is be sure to wear one of your newer shirts that you really like. That way, it's a fun little game of seeing if you might ruin it or not. Luckily, that disgusting looking little sack pinned to my head was a lifesaver, and I didn't drip once!

The final product, aside from smelling like a delicious cherry coke and reliving your middle school glory days, is a lovely little streak of pink hair. I'm sure it will fade over time, but I actually got it to be the exact color I wanted (the photo makes it look a little more extreme than it actually is). What a fun little Sunday project for the whole family. So much better than boring church.

At the very least, if you're looking to remain single, it's a sure-fire way to success...which is obviously my goal, chaaaaaaaaaa.

Family Tattoos!

Here is a good picture that my brother created of our family tattoos! We all got them together, at the same place, on the same day - March 30, 2012 - my dad's birthday. They all have the same message, just different designs. It stands for Benjamin, Emily, Michael and Elizabeth...along with "Be Me" (i.e. Be Yourself). Try not to be too jealous ;-)

Working & Trying & Dating (Part 2)

This is what I looked like today while working. Not having a regular, full-time job definitely has its benefits! Sure, it looks like I'm at a bar at 3:30pm enjoying a margarita...because that's precisely what was happening. HOWEVER, my car was in for servicing, so I had like 3 hours to kill...just until the dealership had enough time to rack my total bill up to about $400. So see, I needed the booze (right before I was about to drive my car home...good planning...).

Seemingly, this was the theme of the week. And welp, now I know.

Part 2 of "Dating Sucks"...

I'm not ashamed to admit that I'm on a free online dating site. I really don't get embarrassed too easily anymore and am kinda like an 'open book' nowadays. What a silly saying. Anyway, the whole ordeal is pretty funny. Let's be honest, if you're on an online dating site, you probably shouldn't be the pickiest person out there. However, it definitely makes me much pickier than I would be in normal, everyday life. In real life, if someone were close to 5'9", I'd maybe consider dating them if I liked the person. However, on the dating site, if someone is under 5'11", I literally scoff out loud and move on. And, that's just the height factor. There are plenty of other deal breakers in my mind (really religious, fat, smoker, any pictures that show you holding a gun, too many pictures of your stupid cats, too many basically nude photos of you in front of the mirror, any pictures of you kissing your bicep, etc. etc. etc.).

The thing that really ruffles my feathers is some of the god forsaken shit heads on this site. Here are some of my favorite examples:

~ Douche bag 1 - "I'm 28 and newly divorced. I was married for 8 years and have full custody of my daughter because dead beat moms suck!...LOL"
...ummm, WOW. I must have missed the punch line there because I'm definitely not laughing out loud. In fact, I'm crying.

~ Douche bag 2 - "I have to warn you, I'm a bit of a chunker!"
Gee, it's good you prefaced that in your profile because you looked so thin and in shape in your photos! I would have totally been fooled, and then wouldn't I feel silly?

~ Douche bag 3 - "I liek to have fun. Im a laidback dude. If your laidback too, hit me up."
Yeah, ok, because you really made a great impression with that stellar spelling and grammar.

~ Douche bag 4 - Has one blurry photo and no profile information filled out.
Who in the hell do you think is going to message you?

And, ok, here is what also annoys me. I somehow manage to scour a little bit and find some seemingly normal guys, so I message them. And then, I never hear back! Oh really, you're not a fan of tall, thin girls that are above average looking, never married, don't have kids, have a college education, etc. Really?! My mistake. So sorry to bother you. Please proceeeeeeeed. I know I sound egotistical, but I've seen some of my competition and it looks pretty grim. On the other hand, I receive a plethora of messages from guys I would never reply to in a million years.

Seriously though, I can't really complain. I've actually met some pretty nice guys.

Bloggingg

I'm really enjoying this blogging thing. Like, for realz. It's fun for me. I guess my fun threshold is pretty low. I don't have a ton of things that I really love or that I'm really good at (I tend to like lots of things a little bit). For example, I was on the JV tennis team in high school and I sometimes got to play. Story of my life. I wish I was reallyyy good at something, like being an excellent baton twirler or a siiiiick guitar player...but alas, I was a drop out flute player instead. Ah well, the good news is I'm getting too old to care now.

Anyway, I've always enjoyed writing, for as far back as I can remember. I just never really had a good outlet for doing so...until now. You lucky, lucky people. I try to make this blog an honest portrayal of who I am (without getting too personal)...sort of funny/sarcastic, serious/thoughtful at times (ugh, I think I'm being too serious/thoughtful lately...I guess it comes with the age), and I try to share some random tidbits of things I enjoy, etc. Hopefully I'm doing ok and not boring everyone to tears. Even if I am, who really cares? Don't read my blog then beotches!

Onto the previously aforementioned random tidbits:
~ I saw "The Lucky One" with Zac Efron this past weekend. Yeah yeah, keep the hilarious jokes to yourself. Once in a while, I like a good chick flick. I'm a freaking girl! Although it was obviously pretty predictable (oh, what's that you say, the girl's gonna fall in love in with Zac Efron? Really? I didn't see that coming), can we please talk about Zac for a second? When did he get so hot!?! What the fuck man. I knew the potential was there (ever since that movie "17 Again" or whatever it was called with Chandler Bing) but whoa. Isn't he like almost 10 years younger than me? Is this even appropriate to continue talking about?

~ This video is funny and you should watch it.

~ Somehow I came across this girl's blog one day, and I've been hooked ever since. It's sort of heavy most of the time, but it's all quite beautifully written. I really enjoy it. This particular post was really poignant.

~ I like these lyrics by Mumford & Sons.

~ Have you ever watched any Jenna Marbles videos? Omg, she's hilarious.

~ Why does Adele have like 5 overplayed songs on the radio right now? Each one more depressing than the last? Geeeeez. I'd like to make it through just one day without wanting to slit my wrists, but nooooo. Thanks for that Adele.

~ The dogs have basically completely stopped performing their tricks. Like, all the circumstances and the treats are exactly the same, but suddenly, they've both conveniently forgotten everything we've so painstakingly taught them. Or, they just don't give a crap anymore. It's kind of funny, if you find infuriating things funny.

Ok, I think that's enough random tidbits for now.

7 months in Florida

So, it's been almost exactly 7 months that I've been living in Florida. WOW. Time really flies. The older I get, the quicker it goes right on by. Although I miss certain aspects of New England and being able to see friends easier, I'm glad to be in Florida right now. It's a nice change.

What a strange age and transitional time period though. People say high school is tough...yeah, sure, it is...but, at least you're super young and feel like you're on the brink of something. Late 20's to early 30's are weird. You're supposed to know who you are but still be learning...you're not supposed to have the infinite wisdom that only comes after years of more living. You're supposed to be somewhat established but not crazily so...maybe you've purchased a house or gotten a promotion. And, in most cases, you're supposed to be married or engaged or having kids or 3 kids, for that matter. I'm not saying that's what everyone is supposed to do because everyone is different, but it sure feels that way. It's what the majority of people do.

Although marriage would be a nice thought with the right person, kids aren't even on my radar right now. Sure, they're cute when they're all well behaved and dressed all spiffy, but that's only what they're like about 2% of the time. The other 98% of the time they're rolling around on the grocery store floor tantruming (yes, I just turned that into a verb) with a bright red face as tears stream down and strangers look on disapprovingly. Every time I see a scene like that I think, "Thank God". That sooo does not look fun. I don't have the energy or the will power for that right now.

But, I get why people have kids. Recently, at the pool, this super cute little girl was swimming with her mom. And, she yells over to her mom, "Mommy, I'm having so much fun! This is soooo fun Mommy!" And, in that moment, I understood. In the end, the wonderful parts of the 2% exceed the bad parts of the 98%.

Besides, if you've dated someone for a while and then have also been married for a while, what else is left to do besides have a kid to add in some additional element of 'fun'?

I'm not sure where I was going with this post. I think the basic gist was that it's strange to be somewhat newly single at 29, living with my parents, in a new state, etc. Lots of changes in these past 7-9 months. You never truly know where life is going to take you. I don't really believe that "everything happens for a reason" because to me that statement seems to mean that it's easy to submit and leave things up to fate. And, although unknown, fate-like factors can definitely come into play, I think you're largely in charge of your own destiny. The wheels are in motion.