Bad News Take 2

You might remember on Monday I talked about having good and bad news.  Yes?  Maybe? Hopefully.  ;)

Well since my good news story was so long, I postponed my bad news for another day.  That day is today.

I may or may not have just taken a deep breath..  Alright.  Here we go.

Last month I talked about not getting into my first choice school for this upcoming school year, and how I was waiting to hear back from my second choice school.

Can you tell where this is going?

Yeah.  I didn't get into that second choice school.  Which happened to be my only second choice.  Sso, for the first time in my entire life, I won't be in school this coming fall.  It may sound kind of cheesy, but I honestly feel lost about what I'm supposed to do.  I mean, since I was 3 or 4 (preschool age), school has been the majority of my identity.  Being a student has been the majority of my identity.  And after next month it won't be.

I'm also incredibly frustrated because it's now going to take  six years (instead of five; I spent three years at my JC) to get a four year degree.

People keep telling me I'm "being led on a different path"and "something better will come along"  but I can't help but remain angry.  At life, the world.. For all the hard work I've put in, it refuses to cut me a break.

The other thing I'm angry about is the college school system.  In high school you're told that you should go to a JC first because you'll have a better chance of getting into a four-year university.  Well, I was told wrong.  As of next month I'll have an AA in Psychology, which means all my underdivision work for a BA has been done.  Which was supposed to be my ticket into a four-year school.  But no.  So, I spent the last three years of my life because of a decision that was based on incorrect information.  Can you imagine how I feel now?  Frustrated.  Angry.  Confused.  Hopeless.  Especially when you take into account that when I apply this fall again to four-year schools, who's to say I'll even get in, with what happened this year?  My transcripts and degree will be exactly the same as my application six months ago.  What then?

~

For now, I'm planning on working full time after I graduate (38 days away!  Is this real life?!) to save up some money to move out and find a place of my own, at least until next fall (2014), assuming I'll be leaving for school then.  The upside to all this is that without class and five page english papers and 10 minute speeches to do, I'll have so much more time to devote to this blog!  Which I am definitely excited about.  :)

I cannot even imagine how stress-free my life is going to be after next month without school.  

I'm almost happy about this whole thing.

Good News and Bad News

Today I come bearing bad news.  Really bad news.  But also really good news.  Which do you wanna hear first??

Good?

Bad?

Good it is.  Unfortunately... I did not win the lottery.  That's not my good news.  I know you were wondering!

This past Saturday, I attended a management workshop at Jamba HQ (Emeryville, CA if you were wondering) as the last step of my assistant GM training (three cheers for being finally done!).  Well afterward I decided to hop on down to the Jamba down the street for a celebratory smoothie - I mean come on, what else would I do? It's appropriate right?  So I got my smoothie and after a few pictures of the awesome patio chairs they had, I headed on home, which is across the SF bay from Emeryville; a 45+ minute drive.

I had been inside my house for no more than five minutes when my dad called, asking, "Do you have your wallet?"

And I said, "Yeah, why?"  While on the phone, I walked over to where I'd dropped my purse on the dining table and rummaged through it.  No wallet.

Ohhhhh crap.  Inside it was my ID, cash, credit/debit cards, my health insurance card, car insurance info, and all of my CPR/Lifeguarding certifications.

On the phone, my dad says, "Because I just got off the phone with Mom [my dad's mom] and she has it."  My grandmother lives in Berkeley, a city neighboring Emeryville.

Turns out, my wallet fell out of my purse in the parking lot somewhere between the Jamba I went to and the car.  Who knows how long later, a girl my age and her mom came across it in the parking lot, and the girl, upon opening it and seeing my ID says, "Mom, we gotta get this back to this girl.  She's even my age!  We gotta help her out."  She didn't turn it in to the security cop patrolling the parking lot, or the nearest business, or even the police; she knew probably nothing would come of it, and that I'd probably never get it back.

Instead, she went through my wallet, trying to find something to point in a direction of where she could find me. My address was on my ID, but she didn't know if that was current or not.  No "call if.." phone number (stupid me).  What she found was a check from my grandmother, given to me as a birthday present, which I'd deposited weeks ago but had yet to tear up.  There was an address on the check.

She and her mom drove from Emeryville to Berkeley, thinking, Oh, she's probably in college and her mom's just helping her out with lending her some money.  It was easy to assume because my grandmother and I share the same last name.  So, they drove to the address on the check and pulled up in front of a convelescence home.  The girl is like, "Oh, this is her grandmother's address!"  So she goes inside and gives the receptionist my grandmother's name; asks to see her.  She presents my grandmother with my wallet and they visit for a while before the girl left her address and phone number for me, and went home.

A few hours later, I was back in Berkeley picking up my wallet, and after hearing my grandmother recount the story of what happened, I picked up my phone to call this girl.  Hell no was I writing this chick a thank you note, that would take weeks!  I was like, I gotta call and thank her right now.  

This girl is one of the coolest people I've ever known, and I haven't even met her!  Hell, I don't even know what she looks like.  I tried to thank her in our conversation like three times, but all she kept saying was, "it's my pleasure, girl.  Totally my pleasure."  

Then she said, "I just wanted to prove a point, that there are still honest people out there who would do the right thing."

Let me tell you, we need more people like this in the world.

Here's the most awesome, amazing part of the story.  You thought it was legit up till now?  It gets better.

I've done things like this for other people in the past, and if you don't believe in karma, this is proof:  what goes around, comes around.  True story bro.

~

Well since that story was so long, I think I'll just postpone my bad news until tomorrow.  Don't worry, I don't have terminal cancer, and my dog didn't die.  You can let go of that breath you've been holding.

Do you have any amazing and touching stories like this??  I'd love to hear them!   xx

p.s.  this girl is getting the most awesome gift bag I can dream up!, courtesy of A String of Purls.   :)

Pink Warmth

scarf, jacket, & skirt | forever 21

Just cause I love y'all so much, I went out last night to take these pictures, even though the sun had already gone down and after being at school for seven hours I just wanted to make a drink and put my feet up.  But I didn't.  Because I know how important your outfit post reads are to you.

Also, I'm madly in love with this skirt (madly) and wanted to broadcast it across the interwebs.

But mostly because I love you.

Seriously though, what is not to love about this skirt?  It's pink, pink ombré at that!, and it's a high-low skirt.  Nothing is not to love about it, that's what.  I got it last week on my Forever 21 spring spree, and have been itching to wear it since.  Rainstorms and windy days had kind of thrown a wrench in my plans though, so yesterday was the soonest big reveal day.  Let me tell you, after months of wearing jeans and dress/tight combos, wearing a skirt on a cloudless, sunny, 65º day was heaven.

Also for funsies, I included a "then and now" picture, taken 5.5 years apart.  And because I know it's going to be your very first thought when you see it, that's not my hair.  I'm standing in front of a hanging plant.  So don't freak out, cause I know you'll want to.  

Have you broken out any skirts for spring yet?  I'm biting at the bit for summer and more of these warm outfits!   xx

ps.  if you're wondering, still no word from ucsc; I'm checking religiously, and I'll mention it as soon as I hear anything!

currently listening to..// Good Girl - Carrie Underwood

Never Have I Ever

Man, does this take me back to my swim team days as a kid... I haven't played this game since then!

I'm writing this today as part of the link up being hosted on Whitney's blog, so yay!  Here we go.

Never have I ever...

1. //  Been outside of North America.  (Shout out to Canada!)

2. //  Gotten a ticket.  None.  Of any kind.  (knock on wood!)  This includes parking tickets.  Not even a speck of dust on my four-year-long licensed driving record!

3. //  Burned a book.  I have about 300 to my name, at last count.  & Fun fact: I started teaching myself to read when I was 3!

4. //  Eaten lobster or crab.  I was a vegetarian for 3 years and I've been pescatarian for 1.5 (consecutively), but even before that, I refused to eat them.  It's just something about actually seeing them swimming around before you boil them, and then actually being there to boil them...  I'm 21 years old and that thought has yet to not send chills down my spine.

5. //  Had anything pierced besides my earlobes.  I really wanted to do my cartilage when I was 18, but after the way my doubles hurt when I had them pierced, I decided against it.  I have a low pain tolerance so considering a needle going through pure fat hurt, I was not about to do it through cartilage!

6. //  Driven a stick shift.  I've wanted to learn for a long time but never knew anyone that had a manual car (besides my grandmother's VW bug from the 70s) - until recently, when my dad traded his automatic VW in for a manual!  So hopefully this will be omitted from the list in the near future.

7. //  Broken a bone.  I always kinda wanted to though, growing up.  Lord knows why, but I was obsessed with wanting to wear a cast.  We had a sling in the house and I remember wearing it around just for kicks.  Even in public.  When I was perfectly fine.  I guess it kinda goes along with the way I pined after braces.  (not so much after having them for five years!)

And my mom swears she never dropped me as a baby.

8. //  Lived somewhere other than the house I grew up in.  Yep....  Sad day.

9. //  Driven faster than 90 mph.  I think the fastest I've ever gone is 87.  Yay for the backroads in the dead of night!

10. //  Been able to do the splits.  Yikes.. this speaks for itself!

If you write a 'never have I ever' post, leave a link in the comments so I can check it out, and also at Whitney's link up!   :)

xx

Matchy Matchy

sweater, belt, necklace, & shoes | forever 21   jeans | the gap

If we got down to it, I am not a girly girl.  I own cowboy boots, am obsessed with horses and know how to drive a manual four-wheeler.  I'm more comfortable with my hair like this and in jeans than anything else.  Yes, I'm a girl and love to look pretty, but I'm not a stereotypical girly-girl.

But when it comes to coral (a shade of pink), I am obsessed.  When I found this sweater and shoes at Forever 21 yesterday, I about died.  First off because they was coral, and second because they never have shoes in my size (10... ugh. being tall sucks).  And believe me when I say never.  These are also now my only flat shoes in my closet that are not sandals.  Sad, I know.  I've taken to wearing my non-slip, unnattractive, black work shoes at non-work places just to get out of wearing 3" heels, since it's still too cold for sandals.  So, major breakthrough here!  Three cheers for flat shoes, I'll tell you that.

I forgot to mention in my post yesterday - I took myself on a movie date yesterday (first time ever!  Can I get a 'hell yeah!'?) in the middle of the day to see The Host - do you know it?  It was published by Stephanie Meyer in 2008 (the only non-Twilight book she's written), and it was given to me as a Christmas present that year.  To say I devoured it is an understatement.  That woman knows how to write a good book!  Good enough that even then, I knew it was going to be turned into a movie someday.  Lo and behold, four years later, I catch wind of its March 2013 release, and FREAK OUT.  As a lifelong bookworm, I have extremely high standards when it comes to book adaptations, and I've been disappointed by them in the past, so I was skeptical of this movie.

But this.

I was blown away.  Every character, set, and conversation was portrayed exactly the way Stephanie had put in my head.  I'm still in awe.

So if you haven't seen it yet, do.  But the book has to come first.  Just trust me.  It does.

Have you seen it yet?  If so, what did you think?  Did you like the book or movie better?   xx

currently listening to..//  Your Man - Josh Turner

Pretty in Pastel

dress, belt, shoes, jacket, and bows | forever 21   bag | the gap  sunglasses | street vendor

I just have to start this off by saying, you guys are the BEST.  Seriously though, the amount of support and love I got from my last post was overwhelming and I am so grateful to you for it!  Sometimes I wonder if blogging is still worth it, and times like these definitely reaffirm my belief that it is.  Just from your comments alone, I've already gained so much confidence about the bumper sticker - so, again.  You girls rock.  <3

Alright sssoo.  Confession.  I bought $130 worth of clothes today at Forever 21.  Don't judge.  I know it's tempting.  ;)  With a brand-spanking-new pay raise, what would you have done??  This girl badly needed a spring wardrobe update.  This dress, belt, bows, and shoes are some of what I got today, along with a few knit sweaters, a pink ombré skirt, and some new workout capris!  Good lord, I have been meaning to get a pair of those babies for months now.  I dunno about you, but going to the gym at night in spandex track shorts is not pleasant.  I don't know if you've noticed, but I've got some long legs, and when 90% of them are bare at night.... Cold.  To say the least.  Hence my excitement over capris! It's an improvement. I'll get to pants. Eventually.

So.  Back to the shopping spree.  Apparently spring has already happened because the entire store was covered with pastel and neon colors.  With all the pouring rain that happened yesterday, I didn't realize spring was even a thing anymore.  California, why do you have to be so bipolar!?  Ah, well.  Such is life.   xx

^ if you look closely, I'm not holding/touching my dress in any way.  the beauty of photo magic!  ;)

currently listening to..// A Little Bit Stronger - Sara Evans

Becoming political

Let's start this off by saying:  I don't broadcast my political views in any way.  I don't share poitical memes on Facebook or hang posters in my room.  With that being said, here goes.

I bought my first political bumper sticker two weeks ago.  Suffice it to say, it's really an important issue to me.

I'm not a crazy feminist, who shuns all men and wants women to stand alone at the top.  No.  Not like that.  I'm just a regular old run-of-the-mill feminist, who believes that the government should trust that a woman knows what's right for her own body.  I don't believe in any way that the government should dictate what we should or should not be allowed to do to ourselves.  Who's with me??

This is not just about abortion, but all reproductive rights, like this (doctors withholding information from pregnant patients), and this (forcing women to undergo an unnecessary and traumatizing transvaginal ultrasound) - and you can't forget the abortion law North Dakota adopted last week that bans all abortions once a hearbeat can be detected in a fetus, which is as early as six weeks!  I mean, really?  Some women don't even know they're pregnant by then! Right now it's legal to have an abortion up to week 20-24, depending on which state you're in.  (this ND bill is scheduled to go into effect on August 1st, so hopefully it gets knocked down by protestors before then)

I'm not trying to preach anything here, I just want to illustrate how outlandish these ideas are, so you're as informed as possible.

I found this in a small little clothing botique downtown, among other odds and ends on display, and even though I knew this was an important issue to me, and I wanted others to be aware of it, I still found myself standing there.  Hesitating.  Wondering if I really wanted to put this on my car and broadcast my views on such a touchy subject.  Wondering what others would think of me if I did.

Then I realized, I'm letting the potential opinions of others silence my desire to make them aware of an important topic?  Luckily I came to my senses about how dumb I was being and bought the sticker.  I went home and slapped it on my rear window.  

I still feel extremely vulnerable and self-concious driving around with this on my car, especially when my family and friends closest to me noticed it for the first time.  Hello, insecurities!  I mean, I was even trying to shield their view of it with my body because I was so afraid of what they would think of me, broadcasting my views like this.

Like I said: dumb!  

A few days after I bought the sticker, I saw this image on Facebook and couldn't believe how perfectly it applied to me.  I realized that what others may or may not think of me doesn't change my views on this topic, so why should I let them bother me?  Answer: I shouldn't.  Revelation accomplished!

Where do you stand with advertising your political standings?   xx