oh hey there

To the boy who Googled my name and found my little corner of the internet: Hello.

To the rest of the world: Hello.

I've missed you! I've missed writing for the sake of writing and being able to share my thoughts with (relatively) complete strangers. I've even missed the mixed feelings of freedom and anxiety when you realize that you have no idea what you're writing about. It's been a while so maybe we should take a moment to catch up.

There have been a few earth shattering moments since October 24th, such as:

• We performed Hairspray, the musical. I was Brenda, the slutty girl on the Corny Collins Show. If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend you fill this gaping hole in your life with some fun-filled, racially insensitive joy ASAP.

• I went to India for three weeks! Whoa! My dad, brother and I spent Christmas drinking chai tea and being stared at wherever we went. It was brilliant, it was miserable, I'm happy to be home.

• Winter. Where did that come from? I love it, I love it, I love it. The snow is so beautiful, the trees look like they've been sprinkled with powdered sugar (the cold has also motivated me to do an unspeakable amount of baking), and it gives me an excuse to buy new wool socks.

Life is good. Life is really good.

Love,

Erika

little things 5

Hello darlings,

Unfortunately, my internet presence over the past few weeks has been restricted to facebook chats and old Pokemon episodes. And sooo... I'll leave you with this, one of my new favorite things:

Little Things "A list of little things we should appreciate."

A couple little, good things from my week:

1. Leftover pizza
2. Crazy friends who will dress up as a zombie with you
3. Comfy, cozy, old man sweaters
4. The sound of rain pounding on the school roof
5. The word "hootzpuh"

Enjoy,

Erika

baby animal of the week: kangaroo

Hello friends,

Yesterday was my ultimate evening of culture and cool things. After musical rehearsal, I went to a book sale, a coffee shop, and an art show. Thus, today is my day of sitting on the couch eating Goldfish crackers, listening to Two Door Cinema Club, and staring adoringly at the following pictures:

Also, I know "of the week" is no longer an accurate time frame. Unless you adopt my new calendar where one week can stretch for MONTHS! Never be late for a deadline again! Just don't specify which Monday you'll do something...

some news

I never know how to keep this balance between my personal life and... other stuff. Writing stuff? Book stuff? Some days I just don't feel like I have enough expertise on anything but myself, and therefore don't have any right to post about them. But! These past few weeks have been supercrazybusy and I have a few things to share.

I got a role in the musical! It's a very small part--my character's name is Vicky and she's a chorus girl who sings/dances/acts in the background. I'm happy with it. And rehearsals are already in full swing, meaning every day after school I'm at the theatre or the music room practicing until 5:30. I honestly have no idea how the people with lead roles can handle it.

I'm not sure if I'm doing NaNoWriMo this year. If I do, it'll be my fifth year in a row. Wow, I've been trying to write novels since I was 11. That boggles my mind. My mind has been boggled. But between band, jazz band, musical, choir, homework... I don't know if my mind can handle any more of this boggling nonsense.

You tell me: Are you doing NaNoWriMo this year? There are 28 days left to plan your epic novel! And, if you don't mind me asking, what do you think of Hairspray?

book of the month - september

My first ever book of the month: Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

I must confess that, back at the beginning of September when I said I was going to read and review Outlander, I didn't think I would make it. I was about a hundred pages in to an 800+ page book. And I wasn't planning on finishing.

But Diana Gabaldon's historical romance has something about it that pulls you in and will not let you go. She uses a line quite often, when one character says something, and the other responds not to what was said, but what was meant. The entire story reads like that, going beyond what I first expected to something rich and complex.

The story follows Claire Randall, a British nurse who, while exploring 1945 Scotland, is pulled through a magical stone circle and finds herself two hundred years in the past, surrounded by tribesmen and clans and war. After reading the back cover, I figured I had a decent sense of what I was about to read: Girl goes back in time. Girl meets handsome Scotsman. They fall in love. Some other stuff happens. The end! But all of the characters were so... so smart. They figured things out, they acted rather than just reacting, they came up with solutions that I never would have.

Outlander is totally unpredictable. Gabaldon describes the Scottish highlands in such beautiful detail I actually looked forward to those big blocks of descriptive text. And there were no set heroes or antagonists. A character wasn't good or evil simply because of who they were--you got to see them develop and change through the novel, and make your own assumptions based on what they did, not what you were told.

All in all, it was an incredible novel, perfect for curling up on a cold Fall day. It's long, yes, but it goes by quickly. It stands boldly alone--but is also the first in a series. I would highly recommend it to anyone wanting to read a book that is fabulously thought out, but doesn't feel like a chore to read.

fall five

Good morning, world!

1. I auditioned for a musical. This year my school is doing "Hairspray". Oh my gosh, I don't think the full horror of singing/dancing/acting in front of other people really sets in until you're there, on stage, and your heart starts to race.

2. I miss eating crunchy things. Like popcorn, pizza, chocolate cake, chips, pecan pie, apples, pears, strawberries, cereal, cheezies... Basically everything I can't eat right now.

3. It rained today. I've discovered sky lights that run the length of the upstairs hallway and make the lack of windows a little more bearable. The sky was white and grey this morning. You can hear rain plinking on the roof of the school when you're sketching in the art room.

4. Over the summer I fooled myself into thinking I missed this: school, homework, waking up early every day... I think I could do without it for a few more months of sunshine.

5. Boys with long hair pulled back in pony tails: yay or nay? I'm watching Survivor and I can't make up my mind...

surgeryerific

To my dearest fellow human beings,

I am exhausted. I have a piece of gauze taped to my arm where the IV was inserted* and my lower jaw is completely numb. Nothing major going on--I just had my wisdom teeth removed this morning. I know it had to happen sooner or later, but can I just say that I'm feeling a lot less wise than I was yesterday?

So, to look on the bright side, I have a list for you!

Three Things You Must Do When Your Mouth Is Completely Numb:

1. Swallow pills. Depending on the reason for the numbness, the pills might be mandatory. But that doesn't make them any less fun! I swear, it's the weirdest thing to see the pill in your hand, put in it your mouth, and then have it completely disappear because you can't feel it anymore. I had to open my mouth and ask my mom if it was still there (which I'm sure she enjoyed to no end).

2. Touch your face. I've been constantly poking my lower jaw because it feels so weird. My hand can feel my jaw but my jaw can't feel my hand. It's like I have an imaginary chin! I have to double check in a mirror every once in a while to make sure it's still there.

3. Talk. A lot. Simple words have never been so hilarious! And if they sound funny to you, the people hearing you talk are clearly having a fabulous time! It's amazing how much you can get across with a couple hand gestures, some very intense facial expressions, and a garbled "Mahhhhh erm a kloopnak ottobob lushvas."

Because I am hoping that I don't get dental surgery very often in my life, I plan to relish this moment. Sure, there might be a little blood on my pillow when I wake up, but hey, sticking out my tongue is like a whole new experience!

Love,
Erika

*I am not so good with needles. Not at all. And, because I have "small veins," my dentist ended up calling in his dad (an ER nurse) to help insert the IV. The dentist's dad, my mom, it was like a family affair. Of course, it would've been considerably more fun if there weren't any needles involved, but what can I say? Dentists have a weird sense of humor.