Care Package

I forgot to mention one other thing that happened in January! I received the most wonderful package from Elis!

The package had a lovely card, a mix that's been living in my car stereo, and some beautiful prints. I'm a big fan of Elis' photography so I was delighted to have some of her prints to hang around my house!

Thank you so much for brightening up my January Elis!

<3 

What happened to January?

One minute I'm ringing in 2014 and the next minute it's February and it's been over a month since I've updated my blog. Crazy! So what happened in January?



I snapped some pics of Minka looking adorable

Had a round of ginger ales with my lovely co-workers.

Bowled the night away at our office holiday party

Played Cards Against Humanity

Saw Broken Bells play on Jimmy Kimmel!

And had the most amazing burger at Eureka. (Seriously, if you go try the Fresno Fig Burger)

January was quite an interesting month over here! How was your January?

<3

Slingshot 2014

The start of a new year is awesome, am I right? I feel like there are several points in the year that always feel like a fresh start for me; the actual new year, my birthday, and the start of summer. One of the best things about the new year for me though, is a fresh planner.

This will be my 5th year using a Slingshot planner. It's published by the Slingshot collective in Berkeley that also publishes a zine. I got my first one in 2010, I had been at Mills for a few months at that point and had seen some other people using them so I decided to try one out. It was the first time I had a planner that started with the new year and not the school year, and I found I actually liked it way better. Not to mention that a Slingshot planner is awesome in almost every way.

Firstly, it comes with a menstrual calendar. If you have a uterus, you will find this immensely useful. So useful in fact, that it actually really upsets me that this is the only planner I've ever seen that comes with one. If you don't have a uterus it's just one page that you can ignore, if you do it's a wonderful way to keep track of your cycle. (Seriously, the lack of menstrual calendars in planners is a stupid product of patriarchy. Get yourself a Slingshot.)

Second, every date has little notes on radical events that happened on that day in history, and each page is decorated with drawings. 

Third, it comes with essays printed in the back. The essays are different every year, some that stick in my mind are one on lucid dreaming, one on better communication during sex, and every year there's a section of tips for dealing with the police. 

In the past I've gotten the large size, because I needed the space to write down assignments and such, but this year I got the smaller size. I usually go to Pegasus to get mine, but this year I ordered it from Whoop! Distro. I'm so happy to have this little bit of the Bay with me this coming year.

Happy New Year!

Acoustic Bandits

As I've mentioned before, Rx Bandits is my favorite band. When they announced they would be doing an acoustic show in Long Beach I bought my tickets the minute they went on sale.

It was such a great show, especially because the venue was actually a movie theater so it had a much more intimate feel that complimented the acoustic vibe. And then there was the wonderful news that they are officially getting back together and are writing a new album!! They also said that they'll be doing acoustic shows in Long Beach once a year, as a tribute to their home base. So much good news all at once!

I was talking to my friend before the show started and I realized I've seen Rx B live more than any other band. I'm pretty sure this past show was the seventh time I've seen them play, and honestly every single show has been an amazing experience. I have so much love and respect for them, and I can't wait to hear the new album.

Lost Voices and Whispering Friends

I have a habit of ignoring my body's needs when I get sick. For example, that one time I got sick my freshman year of college and went to class with a fever. (I probably don't need to tell you not to do that, but just in case: don't go to class with a fever. It's no fun.)

Estrella and I had been trying to work out a time to see each other that would work for both of our schedules for literal MONTHS when the universe finally aligned for us the first weekend in December. You can imagine my unhappiness when I woke up the Wednesday before my trip with a sore throat and a low fever. I took a day off work to rest, but as soon as I wasn't feverish I went back to work and tried to convince myself I was fine. The morning I left for Santa Barbara I actually did feel fine--but I had lost my voice.

This is probably where a rational person would have realized that they should stay home and heal properly, but that is not what I did. I went to Santa Barbara anyway.

No regrets!! It was a much-needed trip; I hadn't seen Estrella since JULY! So we whispered to each other all day, and her mom made me soup and lots of lemony tea. The only downside was that my immune system was tired of me ignoring its needs and I woke up the next morning feeling much worse. I ended up going home after just 24 hours but I'm still glad I went.

Forever thankful for someone who will whisper with me all day <3

Deck the Halls! Part 5: Bonus Round

I mentioned wanting to have some Christmas decorations in my room, and as much as I wanted a real mini Christmas tree, I had to admit that my mom was right and it probably wouldn't fit in my room. In the end I decided on this mini fake tree that I snagged at Target. I was hoping for a white one, but this gold one has done the job well.

I decorated it with some paper ornaments that I folded following the directions on this pin, as well as the 2 ornaments I had posted about earlier.

The topper on this guy is a little bow I made out of the pages of a magazine I had lying around.

I hope you guys are having a pleasant holiday season!
<3

FUN in LA: Whimsic Alley

A few weeks ago one of my friends took me to the most magical place in LA.

Not Disneyland. Whimsic Alley.

It's a store designed to look like Diagon Alley! So you walk in, and the different sections of the store look like little store fronts of their own. They even have a Great Hall that you can rent out for parties!! It was so awesome it was overwhelming. They have so much Harry Potter merch, but also Doctor Who , Hunger Games, and Game of Thrones stuff.




It was so much to take in all at once, I couldn't decide on what to get. I ended up getting a Ravenclaw prefect pin, a button with a dark mark, and a button with the Ravenclaw crest to put on my work apron, and a time turner necklace that I have not taken off since I bought it.


I think I'm going to go back after the holidays to get myself a Ravenclaw Quidditch jumper, but mainly just to be immersed in the awesome-ness again. I wish I had found out about this place sooner, because they also do events like a Yule Ball!


It's my new favorite place, and another spot I think you NEED to see if you're visiting LA.

<3