Beginning... again...

           Let me begin by revealing a few things about myself: I am a mother. I am a student. I am one-half of a wonderful, romantic relationship. I am many things, but I am only one person. Sometimes I am not like myself at all, other times I am too much like myself. How do I know who I really am? I don’t. Who does? Everything that happens around us is what makes us who we are. Every sound you hear, every move you make, every taste, touch, and smell influences who you are. Who do I want to be? I want to be someone who loves life. I want to be someone who wakes up every day knowing that I am truly happy. Who do you want to be? Do you know? Are you still trying to figure it out?

I searched for this answer for a very long time… only to discover that all I want out of this very short life is happiness. Is happiness enough for you? It is for me. Although there are many aspects of my life that make me extremely happy, there are also things that I need to make better; certain things that I need to improve in order to be truly happy: THIS IS MY GOAL.

            How will blogging help? One thing I need to improve is my CAREER. Currently, I don’t have one, which makes it obvious as to why it needs improvement. I want to be a writer. I have always wanted to be a writer. I will always want to be a writer. Expressing my emotions using the written word is so fulfilling. Creating imaginary worlds filled with impossible dreams is like floating through the starry sky; completely calm, relaxed, and so very excited! That is what happiness feels like to me. What does it feel like to you?

            My brother and sister-in-law got me a fantastic gift for Christmas this year! A journal containing 642 writing prompts. Sometimes it is so much easier to express creativity when you already have something to go on! I also believe that some of these prompts could be great fun to follow… I have decided to share them with you! Each day I will compose a blog entry based on a different prompt. I hope you can enjoy my writing as much as I enjoy composing it for you.

-Chandra

Writing... and Reading! Read!!

I just submitted my compare and contrast essay for Writing I… I chose to write about Lord Voldemort and Harry Potter (which is awesome)! The only bad thing about it is that I could write a book comparing these two characters and it was terribly difficult to keep it within 2 pages!! (It was actually 3, teehee!) …4 counting the works cited… Oh well, it was fantastic anyway. I was happy to be able to choose to write about something that I’m so interested in. Since I was little, I wanted to be able to use my imagination in a way that could create such colorful, complex characters! Perhaps one day I will… I certainly hope so!

Speaking of colorful, complex characters, I have been reading some of the most intriguing short stories and poems for my Literature class. I highly recommend these for anyone to read. They are all quite short, but with such interesting and sometimes very creepy themes.

“The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Gilman Perkins is my favorite so far! It is a disturbing short story that chronicles a woman’s decent into madness. Click to read!

“The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin is a very short story with an abrupt, shocking ending! Click to read!

“The Wife’s Resentment” by Delariviere Manley makes use of elevated diction, but contains some very violent, grisly scenes! Click to read!

“The Necklace” by Guy de Maupassant is set in 19^th century France and teaches an important life lesson! Click to read!

“Hills Like White Elephants” by Ernest Hemingway is a wonderful short story that revels the depths of a woman’s complex emotions and the things she is willing to give up for a man. Click to read!

“The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson discusses a chilling topic. Readers will be disturbed by the outcome of this seemingly typical 1950’s story. Click to read!

“A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings” by Gabriel Garcia Marquez is a charming story filled with magical realism! Click to read!

“The Road not Taken” by Robert Frost is a very touching poem that will portray special meaning to anyone who reads it. Click to read!

“This is a Photograph of Me” by Margaret Atwood is just plain creepy. Creepy, creepy, but highly entertaining! Click to read!

“Metaphors” by Sylvia Plath is a wonderful poem expressing personal feelings concerning pregnancy. Click to read!

“Me up at does” by E.E. Cummings is very, very touching and will make anyone who reads it consider how they treat people. Click to read!

“Mirror” by Sylvia Plath will cause anyone to consider how much they depend on outside appearances! Click to read!

I have provided links to websites that will allow you to access the above titles. If you choose to read any of the above, I hope you enjoy them as much as I have!

McDonald's... and thoughts that spawn from it...

I took the kids to McDonald’s after I picked them up from school today… this reminded me of my presentation assignment for First Year Seminar: I have to conduct research in order to discover whether or not fast food is bad for you. I haven’t started on it yet (hello, its fall break!), but plan to pretty soon. The fact that the paper I have to write and the presentation combined are worth 50% of my overall grade means that I will be dedicating a lot of my free time to this project. (I use the term “free” very loosely.)

I’m sure most of us believe that fast food is bad for overall health… whether we choose to eat it every day or not. I actually find it sort of funny that although most people see fast food as unhealthy, they continue to feed it to themselves and their children (myself included). Perhaps that will change after I have conducted my research…

I noticed in an article from The Boston Globe that there were many popular fast food chains that introduced new items to their menus which contained an average of 60 less calories than regular offerings (Kotz Par. 1). Maybe these major chains have discovered that people are beginning to catch on to the adverse effects of consuming such foods and are attempting to lighten up their menus in order to retain business.

Read the article here!

Be that as it may, we might all be wrong. I haven’t done the research… I haven’t got the slightest idea as to whether fast food really is bad for us or not… I guess we shall see.

My trip to McDonald’s also got me thinking about the upcoming holiday! I can’t wait for Halloween… it’s such a fantastic, fun day! McDonald’s is currently giving out Monster High toys with their Happy Meals and my daughter adores Monster High, therefore she just HAD to have one. I have to admit that I love Monster High as well… it’s so very interesting that the characters are based on monsters from long ago that we all know and love!

Check out Monster High for yourself!

My daughter, Bella, first wanted to be Elsa (from Frozen) for Halloween, but has since changed her mind. She now wants to be a Mermaid Cat (which my fiancé, Ryan, considers a catfish, but Bella sees as a mermaid’s pet.) I think it’s a very original idea, so I’m going with it. I immediately hit Pinterest (PINTEREST!) to find ideas for her cat/mermaid makeup and let me tell you, she is going to look awesome! I’m super excited!!

Oooh Monopoly is back at McDonalds!! Who doesn’t love McDonald’s monopoly!? I have had such fun playing it since I was little. Unfortunately, now I am older and rarely eat McDonalds, so I don’t end up getting very many pieces. It’s sad, I know… I think my love for this event is based on my life-long obsession with the actual board game, Monopoly… which is why McDonald’s started it in the first place, I’m sure: to appeal to those of us who love, love, love Monopoly!

I actually won a free one-day Redbox rental today (which would be cool if I had the time to stop, rent, watch, and return the next day, lol.) Hmm, maybe on a weekend day, if I’m not too busy. Ha! Homework (mine and my kids’), housework, and driving are pretty much what consume my time. I’m not saying that I don’t love every second of it (trust me, I do). I would much rather be busy than chilling at home, blogging about my video game adventures (which I used to do quite a bit, haha)… you might remember??

I want to blog about World of Warcraft!!! It’s such a wonderful game!! Wonderful doesn’t really even begin to describe it… it’s so complex. There is so much to do! And it’s terribly sad that I don’t get to play it very much anymore; especially since there is a new expansion coming out in a month, Warlords of Draenor (I’ve already pre-ordered it!!! Teehee).

Check out AND START PLAYING World of Warcraft! I highly recommend!

So, now I must leave you, for I have to take my step-son, Ryley to meet his mother. It’s not at all a fun ordeal (she is a very un-fun person). Thanks so much, though, for checking out my new post! I hope you stick with me and I hope, very much, that you enjoy reading about me and my ideas (I don’t like how vain that sounds… maybe the topic of my next post will be defending myself of vanity accusations?) …maybe not. Check back and find out!

Chandra Goes to College!

SO… I started back at Morehead State University this fall. Since I have been out of school for, let’s see… 5 years now… I figured it was best to pace myself; therefore, I am only taking 12 hours my first semester. What are my initial reactions to going back to college at 25-years-old?? I love it! It’s so exciting and fun and crazy (in the best way)! I’m actually very surprised at how much I love being back in school. It’s a very strange feeling for me because I didn’t like school when I attended previously… at all… like, not even a little… not even kind of… nope. But, this is great! How great?? Great enough that I was inspired to start this new blog following my college adventure. It will not only chronicle my adventures as a student, but also as a mother and homemaker. I have very many responsibilities in my life, which thankfully, makes my life very, very interesting… and BUSY!!! SO BUSY!! So very… very… busy, lol.

I am currently about 7 weeks into my brand-spanking-new college career. Not to brag or anything (well, maybe a little…), I’m doing excellent. I am far exceeding MY expectations. Considering how very busy I am from day to day, it’s really an outstanding achievement that I’m even keeping my head above water. Would you like to know what classes I’m taking? Really? Well, I would be happy to tell you! I am taking First Year Seminar, taught by the highly entertaining Mr. David Flora, Beginning Logic, taught by the very laid-back Dr. Phillip Goggans, Intro to Literature, taught by the overly-qualified (and I’m pretty sure -- feminist..) Dr. Sarah Morrison, and Writing 1 (which I take online), taught by the computer version of Mr. Daniel Porter. My professors are all fantastic (in their own special ways), but my favorite, by far, is Mr. Flora (no offense, others J… keep the peace, I love you all! …please don’t fail me!! lol).

So, this was simply an introductory post. Pretty much to give you an overview of my new blog and what I will be discussing! Please stick with me and check out some of the awesome experiences and opinions I have to share; you won’t be sorry, I promise. I am very interesting (when I have something to do) and BOY OH BOY do I have stuff to do!! Goodnight, everyone!


Check out everything that Morehead State has to offer!!

DIY OBSESSION (...it's new)

So... I am slowly becoming obsessed with DIY. The other day on Pinterest I discovered the existence of Mod Podge. Anybody else ever heard of this stuff? I may be the only person on Earth who has never heard of it! Anyways, I did some research and found out what it’s for: AWESOMENESS! I haven’t bought any of the actual stuff yet (but I will SOON)! I have fantastic plans to re-do two end tables Ryan and I bought at an estate sale. One word: DECOUPAGE, which is the art of decorating something with cut-out something else, something flat, like paper or fabric, usually using Mod Podge (or something similar).

365 Days of DIY 

Recipe:

Mix 1 ½ cups of flour, ¼ cup of granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon of any sort of oil, and 1 ¼ cup of water together in a saucepan or something similar on LOW heat. Stir until it becomes “pasty.” I used a whisk and it worked out perfectly. If you can make gravy, you can make paste. Pour into a Mason jar and apply a tight-fitting lid.

DO NOT USE this on serious projects. I haven’t tried it on wood, but I did decorate my cat’s play box today and I will tell you, it is just like papier-mâché. VERY, VERY fun for small crafty projects, though. I would highly recommend this paste for crafts as it is very cheap, very easy, and fun!!

So I made the paste:

Then poured it in a JAR:

VERY PRETTY, at least!

Next I spent three and a half hours of my life pasting pictures from a very cute children’s book onto my cat, Snickerdoodle’s, play box! I forgot to take a "before" picture, so just imagine a plain box.

Cute right??

I will blog my next project, just as soon as I figure out what it is! HAHA. Thanks!

-Chandra