Renaissance Woman

Published on by Alicia4 Comments

Hello everyone and happy Thursday to you all. It is currently 12:29 am and I am frivolously typing away on my keyboard, my sleep deprived eyes drooping every few clicks of the keys.

My entire life I have never wanted to do one thing. I have never been that girl who has wanted to be a surgeon or a teacher or an artist since she was 6 years. I wasn’t that girl who applied to two schools because they had the major she wanted and great internship and job opportunities, pertaining to her major, upon graduation.

I was the girl who wanted to be a princess, an artist, an actress, a writer, a  mathematician, an actuary, a business woman, a world traveler, a math teacher, a nutritionist, a marine biologist, an english teacher, and so many more by the time she was 18. I applied to over 15 schools because I couldn’t make up my mind about anything.

I always used to think this was because nothing interested me. I was a depression filled, anxiety ridden teen, who couldn’t be wooed by one thing or another.

It wasn’t that nothing interested me, it’s that everything interests me. There is not one thing I can see myself doing for the rest of my life, not because I want to do nothing, but because I want to do everything. I want to star in a hollywood production, see the aurora borealis, do someone’s taxes, invent something, learn about animals, and help a struggling teenager get into college.

There isn’t one job that fits me. I am a puzzle piece that fits into every puzzle while simultaneously doesn’t fit into any.

I think I keep thinking about this because I don’t want to transfer again. I need to pick Ohio or DePaul and I need to pick one soon. My grandfather keeps pressuring me to visit DePaul, call DePaul, look at DePaul’s website and so on, and it is making me want to rip my hair out.

What happens if I pick DePaul and then want to do something else with my life that DePaul doesn’t offer? Or if the same thing happens at Ohio.

As I lay in my blanket burrito, and as my anxious thoughts completely take over me, I wonder… why does no one else have this problem? Why did every single person I know apply to 5 or less colleges and then just pick one? No one transfered, no one waited until April 30th to make an admission decision, no one is laying in their bed, two years later trying to find a new school so they don’t make the same mistakes they had made two years prior.

The only sounds I hear are of a dog snoring next to me in bed (we are only watching her for a week… unfortunately) but inside my head is like a Final Four March Madness game.

Everyone keeps telling me that it doesn’t matter where you go to school, but let’s be honest… it does. I have to like it, it has to be affordable, and they have to have a major(s) that I like and want to pursue.

I like both schools and  once I get financial aid we will talk about affordability. However, the latter, the majors are what I’m coping with. The difference in majors along with my inability to make a commitment and stand by it are the reasons I am still up at 12:48am with a loud and messy head.

I keep weighing the pros and cons. Both schools have pros. Both have cons. Both pros outweigh the cons and there isn’t one that stands out to me. I think I need to just go to DePaul one day and then see if I can get back to Ohio for a few days to really see if I can picture myself on either campus.

Sorry for all the rambling but writing is my way of thinking.

On the bright side, just about 2 weeks till Peru. I have begun packing, and am talking to a girl about going to Machu Picchu over Easter. Half of my life is stressing about college and the other half is pure joy about going to Peru and volunteering. I guess that’s compromise for you…

Alicia

March Madness

Published on by Alicia3 Comments

Hi everyone, tonight March Madness starts! I am a huge sports fan, especially basketball, and every year for the past 4 or so years I have filled out a March Madness bracket. This year, I decided to do the same. This bracket on some ends isn’t super practical. I’m not making a bracket for money so I definitely picked some teams I want to win based on interest rather than record.  If any of you have made brackets let me know if we have some similarities and also let me know who you think will win big this year!

I’ll be watching along all of March, and even though I’ll be in Peru for the last 3 games, I’ll definitely make an update post at some point to show how accurate I was!

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Until my update, happy March Madness!

Alicia

Nine in the Afternoon

Published on by Alicia3 Comments

Hi everyone, and Happy Monday to all of you! This past weekend I was able to see three of my favorite bands in concert… together! Panic! At the Disco invited the bands Misterwives and Saint Motel to join them on the  Death of a Bachelor tour. Coincidentally, I love all of these bands with all my heart and so does my sister and one of our best friends. Casey, Jesse (Casey’s sister), my sister Madi, and I have been waiting for this concert since September when my mom and I pre-ordered these tickets. The second I got the notification that the Misterwives Instagram account and posted a photo, one depicting that they were to be joining Panic! And Saint Motel on this tour. I screenshotted this and sent it to our group message where we immediately agreed that we had to attend. And Bam! 6 months later and it was a reality.

Saturday night we set out to have an amazing night. After a quick Dunkin Donuts stop and a bit of traffic we were at the Allstate Arena and absolutely ecstatic for the hours to come. After leaving my phone in the car, running back to the car, waited in the cold until they opened another door, dealt with a crotchety old woman, saw the 4-mile long merch table, decided against the merch line for the time being, and then made it to our seats.

Saint Motel was amazing. I saw them in October with Casey and our friend Alec. They didn’t play our two favorite songs so we were pretty bummed, but we’ll live. They are so incredible live and I love AJ (the lead singer) and his cool hat-wearing, piano-paying self.

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After Saint Motel was over, and we were thoroughly satisifed, we made a run for the merch table. I needed my damn shirt. Both lines were incredibly long so we decided to head back to our seats to await my all time favorite band Misterwives. I fell in love with this band when I started watching Finding Carter. Their song Vagabond was the theme song for the show and ever since I had heard this song, I have been a huge fan of their band. I have waited 3 years to see them and I finally was able to do it Saturday.

They played some of their best songs, a few new ones, and the lead singer, Mandy, is engaged to the drummer, Etienne, debuted a song that she had written just for him. It was super cute and I want that sort of love one day.

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The second the Misterwives set was over we dashed to the merch table and got our shirts. Madi, Casey, and Jesse got Saint Motel shirts and I got a Misterwives shirt. As we were waiting in line, we kept hearing screams. Panic! Wasn’t supposed to come on for at least 15 minutes when we began to hear these screams so we were worried that we were missing the openng or that something else was going on. We later found out that there was a timer to countdown to when Panci! Would come on stage and people would scream after each minute had passed.

When Panic finally started It was almost an out of body surreal experience. There are not many bands that are better live than on the record and I can say that Brendon Urie’s voice is some sort of God-given gift created to better the world. The way he can hit any high or low note you can think of it maddening. Every time he would hit a note that wasn’t how it was on the album, Casey and I would look at each other, jaws dropped and completely in awe of how a person’s vocal cords can create those beautiful vibrations.

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so artsy Brendon

Our seats were on the floor, however, they were a bit towards the back of the floor so I was a little dissapointed that we wouldn’t be able to see as well. After a few songs, however, Brendon left the stage and a video of him and Pete Wentz started playing on the screen. I assumed he was going to change and all of a sudden casey and I thought that Pete was going to join Brendon on stage. We began holding hands and freaking out in anticipation when all of a sudden a spotlugt appeared about 10 feet from where we were sitting. Immediatlely everyone in the vicinity ran to crowd around the spotlight when Brendon Urie, sitting at a silver piano ascended from the ground and began playing This is Gospel while rotating and confetti fell from the sky.

Everyone was crying and screaming and recording and it was an amazing few minutes. Everything past that was a blur of hoarse voices, runny makeup, and sweating bodies pressing agsinst each other.

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During Girls/Girls/Boys :’)

Sadly, the concert had to come to an end. We made our way to the car with confetti and streamers in our hair, coats, shoes, and purses and smiles on our faces. After being trapped behind a girl giving head to her boyfriend for 10 minutes we finally got out, headed to McDonald’s for a large water and shamrock shakes for everyone else, we stopped at WalMart because we couldn’t bare to have the night end, walked around and bought candy before parting ways for the night.

I hope one day you all find something that makes you as happy as these three bands make me. This night will forever have a place in my House of Memories.

Wait.. that’s vegan!?

Published on by Alicia5 Comments

Hi everyone. After my post the other day about things I noticed since going vegan, my sister told me I should make a post about foods that are vegan but you wouldn’t assume are. I am still discovering these foods and I love finding foods that are ‘accidentally vegan.’

  1. Oreos: While I have no idea what chemicals make up the creamy center of the Oreo cookie, I do know it’s vegan. I also know that unless you can hide them like there’s no tomorrow, these cookies don’t last more than 2 days in my house. 😉 03202CF
  2. Twizzlers: Twizzlers recently got rid of the gelatin in their products which make them the perfect vegan-friendly movie companiontwizzlers4
  3. Reese’s Puffs: Despite most other Hershey products being filled with milk and whey and animal products galore, cocoa powder is used. Bonus, they are also gluten free!87adee93-165e-4e20-834a-c9efc4c0a39c.jpg.web
  4. Cocoa Pebbles: Once again, cocoa powder is used to flavor the cocoa pebbles. These are gluten free as well!0002_Cocoa-Pebbles
  5. Hershey’s Chocolate Syrup: Perfect on top of some vegan pancakes or some dairy free ice cream!91z14MSci2L._SY679_
  6. Chick-Fila Waffle Fries: Once again they’re potatoes, but these are fried in vegetable oil instead of the alternative… Animal fat.slide_362648_4081737_free
  7. Swedish Fish: No gelatin in these either.450
  8. Poptarts: Not every flavor of Pop tarts are vegan.. Mainly the chocolate ones. However, the unfrosted kinds and most of the fruit flavored ones are vegan but always double check!Strawberry_Pop_Tarts
  9. Junior Mints: My absolute favorite candy is vegan! Other than Reese’s peanut Butter Cups but Justin’s brands get the job done just as good!Junior-Mints-Box-Small
  10. Thin Mints: Just because you’re vegan doesn’t mean you can’t eat girl scout cookies. Thin mints are vegan!!thin_mints_new_web

Things that make me smile

Published on by Alicia6 Comments

Hi everyone, I made a post similar to this almost a year ago and I wanted to make another one because I am a lot different than I was last year. After you read mine, tell me what makes you smile. 🙂

  1. Dogs, Goats, and any other animal really
  2. Harry Styles
  3. When something I ordered online comes in the mail
  4. Plane rides
  5. The Fosters (TV show)
  6. Gel nails
  7. Rescued Animals
  8. Fuzzy socks
  9. Making Pancakes
  10. Doing the dishes
  11. Clean sheets
  12. Candles
  13. Fall
  14. Spring
  15. Old Photographs
  16. Babies
  17. Road trips
  18. The smell after it rains
  19. Lightning
  20. Rainbows
  21. Tumblr
  22. Avocado Toast
  23. Star-Gazer Lillies
  24. Catching up with old friends
  25. Music
  26. Sunflowers
  27. The color blue
  28. The color yellow
  29. Tattoos
  30. Lush
  31. Lipsticks
  32. Office Supplies
  33. When the sun comes out after it was cloudy for a while and the sun makes your whole body feel good and warm and cozy
  34. Made beds
  35. Freshly baked goods
  36. Seeing Butterflies
  37. Slippers
  38. Striped shirts
  39. Legally Blonde
  40. Bananas
  41. Seeing Bumblebees doing their jobs
  42. Oversized sweaters/sweatshirts
  43. Writing
  44. The flower section at grocery stores
  45. Iced Tea
  46. Singing along to old songs with friends in the car
  47. Finding out something is vegan that I wouldn’t expect was vegan
  48. Walking with heels on cobblestone roads
  49. Sparkly stones
  50. Candid Photos

What I’ve noticed since going vegan

Published on by Alicia3 Comments

Hi everyone. It’s been over a year since I decided to make the transition from omnivore to vegetarian and about 2 months of being completely vegan.

Since I started cutting meat and dairy and any animal product in general out of life, I have definitely noticed changes in all aspects of myself. Since I get quite a few questions from people asking the benefits of going vegan, I decided to make depicting some of the things I have personally benefited from since making this life change.

  1. I have more energy: tumblr_mej31n5m5S1ryo3y9Contrary to popular belief that going vegan makes you sluggish because of the lack of protein in your diet (eye roll) I have never had more energy. Prior to breaking my toe… I had been waking up at 5:40 each morning and going on an hour or so walk each day. It gave me a nice kick-start to my day and I sure as hell beat my mom and sister out of bed.
  2. My skin has been clearer: I’m not saying that I have no pimples… because I’m a teenager who, with hormones, and forgetfulness, sometimes forgets to change her pillowcases every other week or wash her face after a workout, but I don’t break out as frequently or nearly as much as I did before going vegan.
  3. I eat more but I weigh less: I used to count calories religiously as a younger teenager. I would still, despite my counting calories and vigorous fitness routines, not lose weight. Now, I eat a lot more (albeit I eat a lot more fruits, vegetables, and things to that nature) but I have lost weight/look slimmer with/without exercise.
  4. I poop more: Bowel movements are never things people like to discuss but I mean, it’s sort of common sense. I eat more, thus the waste has to go somewhere. So… I poop more. I don’t really know if this is a benefit or anything but I feel it is good to know.
  5. I have made friends: ezgif-3693741041Since the vegan population is pretty slim, whenever someone mentions the term vegan or even vegetarian, every single plant-based person within a 5-mile radius comes running. I have met a ton of cool vegans who have not only helped me stay on track with veganism but have also passed some amazing recipes my way.
  6. I am saving animals!: ezgif-2510867318I love animals (I’m sure you all know I’m partial to goats and dogs). I love every animal ever. I also used to love goat’s milk. Why is it that I found it okay to abuse (I didn’t know I was abusing these goats at the time) one animal I love but have another animal I love cuddle next to me on the couch? After going vegan, I have saved so many animals (even though it doesn’t seem like it) by eating plant proteins, milking almonds and soy (that’s what my dad calls it) and by being cautious when buying clothes and beauty products. If that’s not reason enough, I don’t know what is.

There are so many more benefits and just random things (like the poop example) I have noticed since going vegan but I feel that these 6 are super important to share. If anyone is vegan or wants to go vegan please feel free to ask me more questions or let me know what you noticed after going plant-based!

Alicia

Women’s History Month

Published on by Alicia3 Comments

Hello everyone, I would have posted earlier, but I took a fall and broke my big toe and pulled a ligament in my ankle. At least that’s what my friend who is pre-med is telling me. I have been making my way around my house with crutches and can’t bear to put a shoe on my left foot let alone put weight on it. So, since my dad, who normally would be the one inspecting my injuries, doesn’t know about the tattoo on that same ankle, I’m going to be hobbling my way around the house sans crutches with a smile on my face when he gets home (him and my mom are out of town this weekend with some friends).

Well, this month is Women’s History Month. This month is very important to me, because I am… a woman. Not sure if you all knew 😉

I used to be one of those people who was like “Why is there a Black History month?” or “Why do we have a Women’s History month?” etc. etc. Now, before you start firing comments my way about much of a racist and meninist I am, at the time I thought I was being quite the opposite. I always felt that by having a Women’s history month or a Black History month, we were excluding ourselves and other minorities. If There is no White History month or Men’s History Month, why do we (women and other minorities) get one. I felt that minorities were already ostracized enough and that by dedicating a month to us we would be outcasted even more than we already were. Plus, I didn’t really think we needed them because I thought we learned all the history we needed in school.

A few years ago, I came to the realization that there were so many things that had happened in our country and around the world that I did not know about. I didn’t know about how women got the right to vote, that women helped astronauts get to the moon. I had always thought that men had discovered the double helix in DNA, nuclear fission, and so many more world-altering inventions now matter how small.

I never realized this in school but the history we learn about isn’t the full story. We don’t learn both sides, we learn the rich white man’s story. For years I thought Christopher Columbus was a great guy because he ‘discovered America’ and I thought that the white man was always correct and could never do wrong because that’s what we learn. We don’t learn about the millions of Native Americans who died when the white man took over the ‘new country.’ We don’t learn that slavery was always wrong, not just when the North decided it was. We don’t learn that women couldn’t go to school because they were forced to stay home and their sole purpose was reproducing and cleaning. We don’t learn so many things in school because not everything is about white men in history, but in schools and media it is.

Now I realize. I realize that we need months for people who aren’t white, straight men. We need them because I learned more about Black History during February commercials on Disney channel as a kid than I ever did in school. There are still so many historical facts that I don’t know about because of this, but if I have learned one thing since Trump’s presidency, or my time of realization for the need of these months, it’s that we shouldn’t need these months, but until our history books are rewritten with the whole truth, and people begin to realize that white men are not the only influential people on this Earth, these months are so important for everyone, because without them, I wouldn’t know who Alice Paul were, Ada Lovelace, and so many other women and men alike who changed the world for the better.

Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss

Published on by Alicia3 Comments

Good afternoon everyone. Tonight I am seeing my sister and one of my closest friends in the musical ‘Annie.’ My sister is one of the orphans (whose name I can’t recall right now) and Casey is playing Miss Hannigan. There are 4 performances (Thursday-Sunday) and I am seeing the performance 3 times. Not because I love seeing my sister dance and sing, but because I was obsessed with the movie Annie as a child and watched the DVD so many times I broke it. So, since I have no Annie DVD and I don’t think it’s on Netflix I need to get as much of an Annie fix until I find it playing on my TV again. My sister has been working her butt off for this and came home at 9:30 a few nights this week, so I can’t wait to see all of her hard work pay off.

Anyway, today, March 2nd, is Dr. Suess’ birthday. Dr. Seuss has made an impact on my life as a child and continues to make impacts on the lives of children across the world. I can recall asking my mom to read me The Cat in the Hat, asking my dad to read me One fish, two fish, red fish, blue fish and truly getting anyone to read any sort of Dr. Suess books to me. Dr. Suess books filled my bedroom as a child and they fill my neighbor’s children’s bedroom now (my attic houses some of the classics of course, can’t just give away Fox in Socks or Horton Hears a Who).

Well, to honor my favorite childhood author, I thought I would share a few of my favorite quotes of his.

“You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose.”

“You are you. Now, isn’t that pleasant?”

“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.”

“If things start happening, don’t worry, don’t stew, just go right along and you’ll start happening too.”

“Say what you feel, and do what you say.Because those who mind don’t matter, and those who matter don’t mind.”

Once again, Happy Birthday to you, Dr. Seuss, and what are your favorite quotes of his?

Alicia

New Year’s Resolutions Update

Published on by Alicia2 Comments

Hi everyone, the year is somehow already ⅙ done and I really wanted to see how on track I have been with my resolutions to see if I have to make any improvements or to see if any of you have forgotten about your resolutions and to kickstart the both of us. Let’s see how I’ve done

  1. Blog consistently: I am doing rather well with this one. I have posted on average one post every other day, and if not one every three days, which is really an improvement for me.
  2. End the year with at least double the posts I have now. This is my 30th post of the year so hypothetically if I continue at this pace I am at, I should surpass my goal of 143 (the number of posts from 2016) with flying colors.
  3. Connect with more Bloggers: I haven’t been fabulous at this but I definitely have met more people which was my goal
  4. Take quality pictures: The posts that I have used pictures in have been good, but a lot of my posts haven’t needed photos so this is one I’ll have to come back later for.
  5. Read: I have started reading every night before bed instead of scrolling my phone so I have read quite a few books this year and I am super proud of myself for that
  6. Learn something new: I still don’t know what and I don’t know when, but I will learn something
  7. Move into the basement: Our basement flooded so we had to tear up our carpet, and under our carpet we found asbestos tile so we have to get that removed but once we do that, we are getting the basement recarpeted and then I will move down there, although it will be sort of pointless since I’ll be leaving again but whatever.
  8. Volunteer:  SOON
  9. Create a budget for myself: I haven’t done this.
  10. Choose a college: Haven’t done this either
  11. Get a job: I have a summer nannying job and once I get back from Peru I am going to start looking for something on the days that I don’t have to babysit
  12. Clean: I have been keeping my kitchen, living room, and my room fairly clean so I’d say that this is a win
  13. Get on a solid sleep schedule: I have been going to sleep at about 10 and waking up at 6 during the week so kudos to me for getting my nocturnal ass in the loop with every other human.
  14. Exercise: I have been doing insanity and running in the morning, so I’ve been doing at least some sort of physical activity almost every day.
  15. Create a skincare routine: Check out my Tarte skincare review for my skincare routine
  16. Be one of ‘those vegans’: I have been eating pretty healthily. I ate a box of Thin Mints for breakfast the other day though, so… Balance.
  17. Drink more water: Some days I’m really good about this and other days I’m not, so I’m halfway there.

All in all, I have been doing pretty good. There are some items that I will definitely have completed/closer to completing by the summer I’ll update you all then. Until then, I have some spinach that needs to be put in a smoothie and a book that needs reading

Alicia

Peru prep

Published on by Alicia3 Comments

Hi everyone, I leave for Peru in around a month and to say I’m nervous is an understatement. Obviously, I am excited but nervous nonetheless.

I have met a girl on Facebook who is from New York who will be in Peru at the same time as I and we end up on the same connecting flight in Panama City, Florida, so it will be nice to have a familiar face and it has also been calming knowing someone else is just as nervous/excited as I am. We have requested to room together (her request as I really don’t care who I room with) but it might not happen. If it does great, and if not, just the chance to meet more people.

I went to the doctor last week and he gave me 6 (?) prescriptions for typhoid, altitude sickness, and a ton of other things I may or may not need. I am literally going to have an entire pharmacy in my suitcase. But I’d rather be safe than sorry, especially in a new and foreign place such as Peru.

All I have to do medically is receive my yellow fever and flu shots, which I will be doing this week. As for the trip itself I just have to pay my actual program fee and then I am officially ready to go to Peru. Yes, I have to pack (and unpack and repack), buy some shoes, gifts for the kids at the orphanages, and a few last minute tasks but this is so crazy to me. I am going to Peru, something that a few months ago was just a mere thought in the back of my head is actually coming together. It’s crazy what $1500 and a good puppy-dog face can do.

I never thought I would be going to Peru at all, let alone a month, and I have to keep telling myself that yes, I am in fact going to Peru. I can’t wait to update you all about my adventure as the day I depart nears, and throughout my entire trip. ¡No puedo esperar a Peru!

hablaré pronto

Alicia

Blogger Recognition Award

Published on by Alicia12 Comments

Hi everyone, the other day, I was nominated once again for the Blogger Recognition Award by Bea from BeaFree. Thank you so much for the award and definitely go check out her blog because not only does she have some amazing things to say, she is super consistent in posting (something I need to learn about). Anywho, let’s get started.

Rules:

* Thank the blogger who nominated you and provide a link to their blog.

* Write a post to show your award.

* Give a brief story of how your blog started.

* Give two pieces of advice to new bloggers.

* Select 15 other bloggers you want to give this award to.

* Comment on each blog and let them know you have nominated them and provide the link to the post you created.

How I started blogging

I have been blogging since I was 14. I stumbled upon someone’s summer bucket list blog and I decided that I wanted to make one as well. So, that summer and the summer after, my friend Molly and I made a summer bucket list blog. We are no longer friends, however, I wanted to continue blogging so I have made a few blogs over my lifetime to continue blogging, mainly just random writings and a bit of food tracking. However, last October, I decided that I wanted to document my time in college so that’s how I started this blog.

Advice

The biggest piece of advice I have is to be social. Follow people, like people’s posts, comment on posts, etc. With all of my other blogs I never did that, however, with this blog, I like, comment, and follow so many people’s blogs and have met so many awesome people because of it.

Another thing is to be consistent. If you’re going to post like once a month people really won’t follow you or keep up with you. I’m not saying you have to post daily, but make a schedule and try to stick with it. Yes, there will be times that you won’t be able to maintain it, say during finals or vacations, but definitely try your hardest to stick to a schedule that is pretty frequent.

I nominate

Lauren           Jessica            Marcella               Katie            Ciarra

Alrighty, that’s all for this award, obviously if you ladies don’t want to make a post about this award, you don’t have to, it’s just something I think is very fun.

Alicia

Day at DePaul

Published on by Alicia3 Comments

Hi everyone, yesterday I had the opportunity to visit DePaul University (the second of my two college options). I live super close so I have been on/ around campus a few times (the vegan cupcake place I mentioned in a post last summer is less than a block from campus) but yesterday I went on an official tour (specifically crafted for transfer students… not sure how much it differs from the freshmen tour but it’s what I was told) of the campus. The weather in Chicago has been absolutely wonderful and completely out of character for February. It has been in the mid to upper 60s and low 70s for the past week (but no… global warming doesn’t exist) but of course yesterday was 40s and raining. Is that a sign from the God I don’t believe in? Kidding, but overall I enjoyed my visit to campus and am even more conflicted on my final college choice.

DePaul’s campus is pretty small (however there are two different campuses; one in Lincoln Park, which we visited yesterday, and one in the Loop) and everything is within a two block radius, unless I have to have classes at the Loop campus, which I will. Students are all given a ventra ticket with unlimited rides for this reason, so there is no cost for getting from class to class which is super nice for school days and also nice for going places on weekends.

For it being such a small campus, there are a plethora of places to go for relaxing, studying, eating, etc. I’ve been to campus a time or two before yesterday so I knew what the library looked like, where the union was, etc.but it was nice to be able to see all of the students in their natural habitats (I have only been on campus when school was not in session) and to be able to learn about buildings I never saw or the significance behind some of the statues on campus.

The tour was very personal and quaint. There were about 6 families and 4 groups of guides so my dad and I had our tour guide all to ourselves. Not that I had any questions, because I’ve done all my research online and I know how a meal plan works, but had I had any questions it would have been so easy to ask any type of question. It was thorough and very informational but also to the point and didn’t drag anything out too long.

All in all, I am now even more conflicted about my decision about college and will continue to make lists about both schools and when I receive my financial aid packages, I might get a better sense of where I want to be.

I can truly see myself at either school, which isn’t what I really wanted to happen. I sort of wanted one to stick out as a front runner but both schools have everything I need and more, and beautiful, and I feel like I fit in at either place.

Well, I’ll be here with my white board and a Venn diagram, ripping my hair out.

Alicia

Tarte skincare review

Published on by Alicia6 Comments

Hi everyone! Look at me being all beauty bloggery. Today a Tarte review, tomorrow two million Instagram followers.

Okay, so basically one of my resolutions was to create a solid skincare routine because well, I don’t have one. My skin is terribly dry and sensitive and finding something that is vegan, cruelty-free, and works on my skin type is not easy.

A few months ago, I discovered Tarte Cosmetics and was blown away by their (mostly) vegan, cruelty-free, and natural line of products they have.

After trying a few skincare brands, and the only thing I’ve gotten out of them is red, dry, and utterly damaged skin, I decided since I use Tarte for a bunch of my makeup products, why don’t I try it for skincare?

They had a sale where I could get a bunch of their skincare products, in sample sizes for only $20 so I had to give it a go.

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I received two sets of products: The Scrub Clean set and The Make a Splash skincare savers set. I also got a freebie travel size of my favorite mascara, so that’s definitely a bonus.

In the Scrub Clean set, there was Tarte’s Frxxxtion stick, Tarte’s Deluxe Deep Dive Cleansing Gel, and a cleansing scrubber.

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Scrub Cleanse Set

The Frxxxtion Stick’s job is to remove any dead skin cells. You apply the stick to wet skin and then massage in with the cleansing scrubber and then rinse off and pat dry. After this Frxxxtion stick application, my skin hasn’t been this soft in I can’t even remember how long. Also, for being a travel size, I didn’t use that much of it so I will definitely get a lot of use out of it. Fun fact: the little scrubber can also be used for brush cleaning, even though I make my sister clean all of my brushes so for the day that I do clean my own brushes, I’ll be able to use the scrubber.

Following the Frxxxtion stick was the Deluxe Deep Diving Cleansing Gel, which for starters smells like a rainforest. I don’t know what a rainforest smells like, but I have to assume it’s this. It’s a face wash that can also be applied with the scrubber. It’s really refreshing when you put it on your skin and definitely gets anything that the Frxxxtion stick missed off of your face. I really enjoyed this face wash and didn’t dry my face out, which is totally a first when it comes to face washes for me.

For the next set: The Make a Splash skincare savers set, there was the deep diving cleansing gel (the same as the other set so I won’t go over it again), Rainforest of the sea Setting Spray, and the Drink of H2O hydrating boost.

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The Make a Splash Skincare Savers set

After I used the cleansing gel, I spritzed on some of the setting spray, which smelled exactly like Sprite. I don’t even like Sprite but this was phenomenal. It’s supposed to be a setting spray or makeup primer, but can also be used as a skin refresher. I didn’t use it before or after makeup, but it was refreshing. I definitely will have to use this as a primer or setting spray at some point and see if it lives up to those uses.

The final Tarte product was the Drink of H2O hydrating boost. This is actually the main reason I bought this set in the first place. It’s a lightweight gel moisturizer that is said to help quench dry skin. It is literally supposed to be a drink of water for your skin, and it is. With all of my old skincare regimes, I had to reapply lotion every hour or so, but I had this product on all day and never reapplied once. I thought it would be oily on my skin, based on how gel-like it was, but my skin absorbed it really quickly and easily.

All in all, if you’re vegan/ use cruelty-free products, and have dry and sensitive skin (or any type of skin really), these products are for you!

Starved Rock Shenanigans

Published on by Alicia4 Comments

Hi, everyone, last weekend was absolutely beautiful outside (global warming is real folks), so my mom, some friends, and I decided to head out to Starved Rock for some hiking, eagle watching, and apparently a ton of dog petting ( this wasn’t planned but we saw over 20 dogs, so naturally…).

I woke up bright and early, ate breakfast, put a backpack together, and ventured the hour and a half or so to Starved Rock. At about 9 am, we arrived and parked, grabbed a camera, water, etc. and started hiking to see some bald eagles.

After climbing an obnoxious amount of stairs, which my mom complained about the whole time, we stopped at the eagle look out post and waited… and waited… and waited… and waited. And guess what we saw! Absolutely nothing. We waited, and zoomed all the way in with our big lens, and saw squat. So, we decided to make our way around to another lookout point in hope of seeing something other than a squirrel or a seagull.

As we made our way over, we climbed an ungodly number of more stairs (which my mother also complained about) and finally ended up at the lookout point on the opposite end of the park.

We waited then… and waited… and waited… and finally saw a freaking bald eagle! It was so crazy and majestic and beautiful and although we had a HUGE lens on our camera, we couldn’t get a solid photo. But, who cares about a picture, when I got to see my nation’s bird, in the wild, doing his thing?

After we got our eagle fix for the year, my mom got a text saying that the people we were meeting at the other State Park, Matthiessen, had arrived so we finally got to walk down some stairs and venture on over there.

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Driving from Starved Rock to Matthiessen

Tyler and Day, the people that we met up with, brought their dog Annie, who we’ve dog-sat for before, and it my absolute favorite (living) dog. She’s half cocker spaniel and half pit bull and is the sweetest dog.

We started walking down some stairs and everyone started making fun of my for my shoe choice: Converse. I know they weren’t the best shoes for hiking but I’ve hiked in them before and I still don’t have a solid pair of hiking shoes, so, those had to suffice.

As we made our way down 10 or so flights of stairs (nice then but not so nice going back up) we decided to go left towards one of the two waterfalls. The ground was mostly hard, however, we were sinking into the ground a smidge, because the temperature had been rising all day and people had been using the trail for the past 2 hours or so.

As we kept walking, the mud had become slippier, our feet, even despite the traction on their hiking boots, were covered in leaves, so much so that we were basically mud-skating. As we edged closer to the first waterfall, the ground became suuuuuuuper soft, and all of a sudden my mom goes sliding down a hill, I am knee deep in mud, and Tyler completely eats shit and has mud all across the right side of his body. We didn’t let the mud stop us, however, and we were able to see a beautiful frozen waterfall. After some photos, we made out back to where we started and kept walking to the other waterfall.

The first frozen waterfall
Annie wanted her closeup so she hopped into our photos

The journey to the other waterfall was a little more treacherous, but with muddy shoes and clothes we began. There were a lot of little streams (and by little I mean pretty damn wide) with makeshift bridges using logs, 2x4s, rocks, and other random things that we somehow had to cross and not fall in the water. I got mud all over my hands after the first bridge crossing and then just gave up and let my converse be submerged during the second bridge crossing. After that, my solely muddy shoes, were now muddy and soaking.

We finally made it to the other waterfall which was absolutely gorgeous and had some caves of sorts in the surrounding area. Annie thoroughly enjoyed being able to run all over the place, eat snow (not yellow snow of course), sticks, and just to have the ability to be a happy camper.

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After climbing 50 flights of stairs, walking over 5 miles, and having been covered in mud and god knows what else in those creeks, we were finally able to relax with a picnic lunch before driving back home where I promptly stripped off my pants, socks, and shoes, and threw them right into the washing machine.

Alicia

Who Am I Tag

Published on by Alicia9 Comments

Hi everyone, so I’ve seen a ton of people do this tag, and I’ve decided to do it as well, because who doesn’t want to know more about me? All jokes aside, this is actually a really cool tag because the questions aren’t “What’s your favorite color?” or “What’s your mom’s name?” but really intriguing questions. Let’s get started.

What is the meaning of my name?

There are a few different meanings of my name, but since I am predominantly German, I’m going to use the German meaning, which is sweet. I can be sweet sometimes, key word is sometimes.

What is my Myer-Briggs personality type?

My personality type is INTJ, also known as the architect. My %s are Introverted – 67%, Intuitive – 69%, Thinking – 86%, Judging – 60%, Turbulent – 94%. Almost no one believes that my introverted % should be that high (or be on the introverted scale at all) because when I’m around people I know and am comfortable with I’m super outgoing and I can talk A LOT, but I’m really awkward and anxious in new social situations so… I don’t know.

What is my Zodiac Sign?

I’m a Gemini (June 12th and don’t forget it… kidding) Everyone gives Geminis so much shit and I still have no idea why. I mean everyone thinks all Geminis have that double personality thing going or whatever (but who doesn’t have a double personality). Like I can really hit it off with someone and then I’ll be like “yeah I’m a Gemini” and all of a sudden they’re out the door. Obviously, this isn’t always but it has happened at least once, which it shouldn’t.

What is my Hogwarts House?

I took the quiz and I got a tie between Gryffindor and Slytherin… That makes 0 sense. I’m basically Draco and Hermione’s love child. I dig that

What are my learning styles?

I got a multimodal learning preference which basically means I can learn from any of the VARK methods. I did get the most for kinesthetic, but only by 1.

Am I right or left brain dominant?

I got equal. 44% left and 56% right, so I’m a little bit more right brained but not too much.

What is my Blood Type?

O positive. The Red Cross sends me emails like 5 times a day asking me to donate.

What career am I meant to have?

I GOT SOCIAL ACTIVIST AND I AM CACKLING THAT IS SO TRUE

Which Divergent Faction do I belong in?

Okay, I never read/watched any of the Divergent books/movies. Well I watched about 10 minutes of one and it reminded me too much of the Hunger Games (which I also didn’t like) so I have no idea what this means, but I got the Divergent faction.

What does my birth order say about me?

I’m the firstborn in my family and it basically says that I am a natural leader, ambitious, and responsible. I can be a leader when I have to, I am usually ambitious, and I’m pretty responsible (unless I have to make my own doctor appointments… no thanks)

Okay that was really fun, I learned a lot about myself through this and I hope you guys all learned something about me too. I am not going to tag people because I feel like everyone should do this, If you end up completing this tag, tag me in it or something because I want to know how similar/different we are!

Alicia