Concrete Jungle Where Dreams are Made Of

48 days until I leave for New York City!

I booked the flight and hotel today, and am leaving in about 15 minutes to get my passport picture taken.

I'm only going for 4 days, 3 nights, but I'm incredibly excited.

I'm not really big on all the touristy things, so I plan to just do a bit of sightseeing. I plan to go to the MET, Natural History Museum, Central Park, Time Square, and Rockefeller Centre, and of course shopping at Macy's, 5th, and Canal Street. I also would love to go to a Yankees game, but tickets were sold out online. Hopefully I can hit up a scalper outside Yankee Stadium!

Mostly I'm just excited to visit the City that Never Sleeps, that concrete jungle where dreams are made of, there's nothing you can't do!

It's a Beautiful Day in this Neighbourhood

The weather was gorgeous today. Absolutely beautiful. Sunny and warm, though a bit windy. Today was the first day of the year that I didn't need a jacket, and it was an awesome feeling. And man it felt great to wear my Chucks again!

I took advantage of the weather by going to Jack Astor's and sitting on the patio with a friend, and then walking to the mall. In the summer spirit, I tried to find a dress with pockets, and though I found a few I wasn't overly satisfied with any of them. I plan to keep looking. That, and fun, flirty tank tops, are my summer clothing goals.

On my way home, I walked the 45 minutes from the subway to my house to soak up more Vitamin D. Although my feet hurt now, since it's been about 8 months since I've done so much walking, I was glad to have gotten out of the house.

Can't wait for summer! <3

The Land of Painted Caves

Today I finished reading The Land of Painted Caves by Jean M. Auel. It is the last installment of the Earth's Children series, and is set in prehistoric times. The main character, Ayla, is an orphaned Cro-Magnon girl who is taken in by the Clan of the Cave Bear, a group of Neanderthals. The series outlines Ayla's trials as she struggles to find a place to belong in the world.

I began reading the series when I was quite young, perhaps around 13, because my mom had read them. When this last book came out, I was incredibly excited to finish the series and bought it nearly right away, although I am generally opposed to buying hardcover novels.

I have to admit that I was incredibly disappointed. Please note that, if you are interested in reading the story, there will be some spoilers below.

I found that the story, in general, lacked plot. Ayla and her family seemed to be constantly on the move, on a type of journey, but always to do the same activities. While Auel tried to change it up with hunts and natural disasters, these events were covered within a matter of pages, and then forgotten. It wasn't until the end that I found that anything exciting began to happen, and then, of course, there was the predictable falling out between Ayla and her mate, Jondalar. To top it off, Auel solved their problems in exactly the same way she has solved other problems in previous books.

The characters themselves, most notably Ayla and Jondalar, are flat and, in my opinion, poorly developed. In the fanfiction world, Ayla would be called a Mary-Sue: a predictable, boring, and "perfect" character, with few flaws and none of which are major. Everything works out for her, with minimal or no effort on her behalf. In the interest of artistic creativity, Auel has credited Ayla with many inventions and concepts, for example taming animals. While I would normally find this completely acceptable, it only adds to the "perfect" idea of Ayla, this orphaned girl who is extremely lucky.

Additionally, I found the book poorly edited. There were a great deal of typos, and at one point a paragraph was duplicated nearly word for word a few pages after I first read it. Auel also discusses Ayla's accent in great length, bringing it up in detail every single time Ayla meets someone new -- which is often. There are other constant repetitions, which detract from the story and add length to an already long (and boring) novel. I found myself skimming for many pages at a time, tiring of the constant retelling of the same idea, just at another point in their travels. I also don't personally like Auel's writing style, which I find basic, bland, and predictable.

I do, however, admire the great amounts of research that must have gone into this story, and the series as a whole. Auel discusses medicinal plants in extreme detail, as well as design methods the Cro-Magnons may have used to build both basic and unique items. I imagine that this was no easy feat. I also liked the reappearance of some former characters, despite how unrealistic that may seem.

I give this book a 2 out of 5. I would recommend this novel to anyone who has read the rest of the series in its entirety, just to culminate Ayla's story. Otherwise, I think this book is one that can probably be skipped.

Good Hurr Day

Yesterday I found this YouTube clip giving me a tutorial on how to create mermaid waves in my hair. I wasn't hopeful because my hair is extremely fine and never holds curls. In high school I tried on two different occasions to perm my hair, neither of which held. For my grade 8 graduation the hairdresser curled my hair using half a bottle of mousse and a ton of hairspray, and while it held the curls were definitely falling flat by the end of the ceremony (which was short -- it was grade 8).

This is my hair naturally:

Aside from the clip, of course, I have done nothing to it. Fresh out of the shower, air-dryed, product free. Just a quick comb and voila. As you can see, it's pretty limp, and very straight.

Using the techniques from the tutorial, I achieved this:

I allowed my hair to air-dry after showering, and then used the flat iron. I used a bit of mousse to (attempt) to keep it in place. Although I don't like that you can tell there's mousse in it, I'm very impressed the waves even held.

More pictures:

in the boyfriend's car

getting more picture evidence of the successful waves

The waves did begin to fall flat, as you may be able to tell from the photos. In the first picture, the waves are much more distinct than in the final webcam ones, which I took several hours later. Although I was impressed with the results, I feel like my hair looks incredibly dry. My hair is clearly not used to being fried to shit from a flat iron. If I were to try to achieve this look again, I'd consider using a heat-protecting serum and perhaps a leave-in conditioner for the tips, which look particularly fried. Might also help if my hair was a bit longer. I liked that it made my hair look like it had more volume. All those bank tellers were impressed with my hair fo sho (yes, that is the only place I went today. The waves were purely a result of boredom -- not necessity for an event!)

Beastmode

Enough with the heavy!

As I'm sure many of you are aware, we are currently in NHL Beastmode. The current Round 1 standings are as follows:

• WEST
• Vancouver Canucks lead Chicago Blackhawks 3-1
• San Jose Sharkes lead LA Sharks 2-1
• Detroit Redwings lead Phoenix Coyotes 3-0
• Nashville Predators lead Anaheim Ducks 2-1
• EAST
• Washington Capitals lead New York Rangers 2-1
• Philadelphia Flyers lead Buffalo Sabres 2-1
• Montreal Canadiens lead Boston Bruins 2-1
• Pittsburgh Penguins lead Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1

Although the Penguins are by far my favourite team, they are crippled without Crosby and Malkin. Also they've been playing like shit (although Tampa has been also. Stamkos could demolish the entire Pens team single-handedly if he ever decided to show up for a game). Unfortunately I have little hopes for them. Even if they make it past the first round, they'll be eliminated in the second.

As a replacement for my beloved Penguins, who I realistically acknowledge have no hope, I am cheering for the Canucks! Last night the Hawks won their first game of the series, to start closing the gap. Apparently, this led to mass hate via Twitter on the Canucks fans. I was actually confused by this. What's the deal?? Are Nucks fans douchebags or something? Arrogant maybe? I actually have no idea. I never got that impression. But, from what I hear, it was overwhelming. Weirddddd. Regardless, I'm rooting for Vancity.

The Jays also beat the Yankees last night in the bottom of the 10th. I missed the game, unfortunately, and will probably miss today's too. Boourns. What I can tell you is Brett Cecil is pitching. Go Jays! #beastmode


On a completely random note, I will be starting work soon. I am torn. As much as I am enjoying my free time, I also like having a disposable income slash money to pay for tuition. I work at an amusement park. Next week I'll need to start going in for pre-season meetings, preparation, and training. In addition to training my staff, I will also need to learn a new point-of-sale system, since we've upgraded from the piece of shit we've been using the past 3 decades. There are also a lot of changes to the park itself, with new attractions and new operations. Exciting, in some ways, but also daunting. It opens in only 24 days.

The "Real" Story of Columbine?

The other day I found this, an article describing "the real story behind Columbine."

It started on Twitter, when @OMGFacts tweeted that Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, the gunmen, were not bullied but were themselves the bullies. I was enraged by this, and was determined to find the source of their "fact". A Google search brought me to the USA Today article.

I find the article troubling. The author states that Harris and Klebold were not bullied: where is the proof of this? The article's evidence comes from the boys' journals, in which they discussed "picking on freshmen and 'fags.'" While this is bullying behaviour, it is not isolated. Bullying is never isolated. Something sparks it, and who is to say that it wasn't brought on by bullying Harris and Klebold experienced themselves?

Mental health issues are also a factor, as the USA Today article acknowledges. However, the article stigmatizes mental illness. Quoting an author who wrote on the attack (not a psychologist, mind), the article says that Harris was "a cold-blooded, predatory psychopath -- a smart, charming liar with 'a preposterously grand superiority complex, a revulsion for authority and an excruciating need for control.'" While this all may be true, it nevertheless places a negative connotation on mental health. If this is true, then Harris should have been helped. If he was truly struggling with such issues, can the blame rest completely with him?

Finally, I think that the article is trying to shift any blame away from the victims of Columbine and place it entirely on Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold. I think this propagates bullying with the implication that some people will lash out violently regardless of whether or not they were bullied (or suffered from mental illness), therefore people should bully others since it won't make a difference. This is obviously ridiculous, and I believed it was common knowledge that an event such as the Columbine shootings could not be an isolated situation until I realized how many people were eating this shit up. There are always other factors to something like this, whether it is mental illness, or bullying, or childhood abuse, or what have you. It is absurd to try to fit this into a cookie cutter explanation that disregards any other factors.

I am not at all trying to suggest that what happened at Columbine wasn't tragic. It was. I remember coming home from school and seeing it on TV. I remember feeling afraid for the students that were, at that time, still trapped inside the building. I remember feeling relieved when they began to emerge. I remember sympathizing again with the friends and families that suffered losses, and injuries. I remember crying during an Oprah episode years later when she interviewed survivors of Columbine, and watching them struggle to recount the traumatic episode. It is tragic. It should be commemorated. But it shouldn't be disregarded as a case of a psychopath and his minion. Because that's not at all what it was.

Facebook-less

A few days ago, I deleted Facebook. This was a big step for me since I am constantly checking my newsfeed (damn you, Blackberry!) and have been a Facebook user since 2007. I find that although I do miss using it when bored or on the bus, in general I haven't thought much about it. I also find that I am being more productive -- ironic, since school is done for the summer. Instead of checking Facebook, though, I am doing a lot more reading, which I thoroughly enjoy and which I could do more of.

But why did I delete Facebook in the first place, especially since I am such a self-professed addict?

1. Facebook stalkers. Okay, I'll admit I am (was) one of them, and my stalking skills are largely unrivaled. I can pretty much find anyone I want on Facebook, within the restrictions of their privacy settings, even if they are pretty well hidden. It isn't the fact that people can find me that concerns me -- if that was the problem, I'd tighten my privacy settings and get over it. No, what bothers me is when I have people on my Facebook for work or school, and they "like" EVERYTHING. For example, my status once was "T-3 days." This is, obviously, an ambiguous status that doesn't really mean anything unless one understands the context. A former co-worker of mine "liked" it, which totally blew my mind. Why would they like it? They didn't even know what it pertained to! In addition, this person insists on commenting on everything regardless of the relevance to them. If it wasn't for the work/school aspect, I would delete this person off my Facebook altogether.
2. Limited profiles. Remember the days when you decided what your limited profile consisted of (meaning, what could be seen), and added people to this category? This no longer exists. Limited profile is now a friend list that you add people to, but not only is there no way to change what these members can see, there is no way for me to even see what my limited profile hides (unless I'm missing something). This is ridonkulous. Ye olde limited profiles would have been perfect for the aforementioned stalker co-worker. Sadly, it is now unhelpful to me.
3. Rude replies. There is a friend of a friend who insists on commenting on everything in a judgmental, douchebaggy way. They difficult for the sake of being difficult, and this is understandably, I'm sure, frustrating. This person isn't the only one who does it, of course, but perhaps my best example. Facebook is renowned for it. But why deal with it unnecessarily? I have to deal with this particular person regularly through our mutual friend; please spare me in our off-time.
4. It is all-consuming. Recently my mom joined Facebook. I feel like many people would be completely opposed to adding their mother on Facebook, but I feel like I have nothing to hide from her (she already knows almost everything) and didn't care. In some ways it was fun sharing Facebook with her -- she was partaking in something that was such a huge part of my life. She soon became comfortable navigating around the site and reconnected with old friends she grew up with. Great, right? Wrong. That's when Facebook began to consume her life, too. I felt like anytime she had anything to say to me, it was to tell me about some random shit that had been said on Facebook, or to complain about something Facebook had done (one time she became so angry with Facebook that she shut down the computer and stormed around the house. When my brother -- either brave or stupid -- asked her what had happened, she explained that the comments she was posting were not showing up, then magically, after she tried reposting it several more times, they all appeared. My brother and I both looked at each other, informed her it was a lag, and not at all uncommon. My mother is fairly computer illiterate, also, in case that needed explaining). I felt that I didn't care about her positive OR negative Facebook experiences because, let's be real, they were on Facebook. This not only led me to get annoyed with her, but caused me to reflect on myself. I spent far more time on Facebook than she did (damn you, Blackberry!), although the novelty of it had long-since worn off. But I couldn't help but wonder if I was equally as annoying. Did I also constantly talk about Facebook? Complain about Facebook? Even if I didn't (I'm not actually sure), there was no doubt that Facebook consumed my life. I felt I needed to take a step back and breathe.

Inhale. Exhale. I am still Facebook-less. I'm still alive. I don't need to know what everyone is doing every second of the day. A very valuable lesson, I think.

I have every intention of reactivating my account one day, and probably sooner rather than later. But even if I do reactivate it, I'm hoping that my self-imposed suspension will be a turning point: since I will have learned (am learning) that I can function just fine without refreshing my newsfeed every 3 seconds, I will refrain from doing so even with an account.

Preface

I find that most blogs focus on something specific. Fashion, perhaps, or beauty. These seem to be the most common of the blogs I find. I am neither fashionable nor interested in beauty. Photography also seems to be popular, and some blogs feature stunning pictures. But I am not artistically creative, and that extends to photography.

What this blog is is an outlet.

In high school, I used to write all the time. Stories, mostly, or rather 3 pages of a chapter for a novel I swore I'd finish one day. Since starting university, my creativity has been stifled. I have neither the opportunity nor the time to write anymore, and I miss it. Now that school is done for the summer, I have more time and that old longing to write has returned. The problem is I know that I won't have the time for much longer: I'll be working full time and taking a summer class. So I decided to start a blog. I don't have to invest as much time in it as a novel, for instance, but it will also be ever-present to update when I feel like writing (or ranting, or posting pictures, or just sharing my insight).

So this blog will be a ramble of various things, including but not limited to:

• school
• work
• books
• music
• movies
• sports
• gym
• my volunteer positions
• irritating things
• funny things
• drunken things

I'm random. My blog will be too. (also profane. you've been warned.)