[The Insta Life] Goodbye, Hello

This Insta Life is dedicated to the ending and beginning of two very different chapters of my life. Saying goodbye to my college years and hello to my young adult years. It was a rocky finish there at the end (at least for me), so this new "hello" has been a lot of focus on the good and the happy. More on me and what I want and less on others and what they want. I'm half way across the world right now with a new beginning and a fresh start. Everything and everyone I know is back on the east coast of the U.S. S

So. Goodbye.

And. Hello.

Because Taylor Swift, Duh

Her new album is finally out! Go buy it, fool. And if you're near a Target (unlike me), go get the Deluxe version!

Keira Knightley in "Begin Again"

 

I remember watching the trailer for this movie on tumblr a while ago, but I forgot about it because it didn't get a whole lot of promotion in the States. However, it was apparently a big thing in Korea, and when I got here I started hearing about it a lot more. So yesterday, while I was still recovering from jetlag and one of those mucus-y sore throats, I decided to give it a go. I'm only about half way through the movie because of spotty internet until I get my own set-up, but I do have to say, my main takeaway is a reminder of why I love Keira Knightley so much! 

I just love everything she's in, whether it was Pirates of the Caribbean or Seeking a Friend for the End of the World. I feel like I've grown up with her from Love Actually  and Bend It Like Beckham, and I'm so excited for how she's grown in her professional career. Another thing I've always loved about her is her effortless style--from the hair, face, clothes, shoes, and more. I feel like her personality and aesthetics hearken back to the old Chanel days (hence her perfection as one of its faces). Begin Again highlights this style perfectly. Yes, she's not Keira Knightley but Gretta. However, I think it's safe to say she wasn't exactly out of place in her wardrobe and style. Here are just some of the wonderful examples of her "boyfriend" style. 

[TV Talk] Fated to Love You

This picture pretty sums up this kooky, adorable drama! It's the first time I've watched a drama while it aired in the country, and it was not fun waiting with everyone else. Although, it was probably healthier as I wasn't inclined to binge watch. Anyhow, "Fated to Love You" or "You Are My Destiny" or "운명처럼 널 사랑해" was originally a Taiwanese drama, also called "Fated to Love You." It was one of the few T-dramas I watched all of without getting bored, so I was pretty excited when I found out it was going to get a makeover with the Korean version (i.e. bigger budget, better clothes, better sets). I remember a few things about the T-version: 

1. The, uh, love scene was actually quite steamy for an Asian drama. Like, I blushed.
2. The mid-series scene that moves the plot from Act 1 to Act 2 had me crying a little bit. Okay, like a lot. Actually a lot of Act 1 had me feeling really sorry for the main girl.
3. The ending was hilarious.
4. Actually besides the dramatic parts, the drama was the definition of hilarious and kooky.
5. The second guy had some major flow (and by flow, I mean hair).

With this in mind, I found myself loving the Korean version more! Probably because it had a bit quicker of a pace, and the actors who played the leads were just so good. Here's the basic summary: Kim Mi Young (Jang Na Ra) is the definition of a doormat or, as she puts it, a post-it note. People use and ask her for everything from getting coffee to picking up dry cleaning and more, even though this is not her job. She never says no. Never. Ever. She has a best friend at the office, Jeon Ji Yeon (Park Hee Bon) who constantly laments her pushover tendencies and fruitlessly tries to encourage her to stand up for herself. She also has a family on an island made up of her mother (Song Ok Sook) and her two older sisters a pregnant Kim Mi Ja (Lee Mi) and Kim Mi Sook (Han Kyu). On the flip side, our romantic hero is Lee Gun (Jang Hyuk) who is both the heir to a hair product company and the descendant of the Jeonju Lee clan, a family plagued by losing their male heirs to Huntington's disease in their mid-thirties (a.k.a Lee Gun's age). There is pressure from the elders of the clan, his grandmother (Park Won Sook), and the threat of his half-brother, Lee Yong (Choi Woo Shik), and his father's former mistress (Na Young Hee). Gun assures all sides that he does have plans to marry as his long time girlfriend and love of his life, Kang Se Ra (Wang Ji Won of "I Need Romance 3)), is finally returning to Korea from dancing ballet in New York City after failing to get a lead roll.

The two worlds collide when both Gun and Mi Young happen to be at the same resort in Macau in rooms that end in 9 and 6. Gun is there with plans to propose to Se Ra, who ditches him last minute for a callback, and Mi Young has won a free trip through a raffle at work. The soap factory owners from Mi Young's hometown are in Macau to drug Gun into sleeping with a hired escort and take photos of him in compromising positions so he won't tear down the island's main source of income. Things flip when Mi Young accidentally (and in a highly unlikely scenario) drinks the drug meant for Gun and winds up in his room when the 9 flips to a 6, and she fails to recognize the difference in her drugged stupor. The owners manage to still drug Gun when they pretend to be masseurs. They two sleep together, Gun thinking Mi Young is Se Ra, and Mi Young thinking Gun is her new boyfriend (who wound up using Mi Young for this trip). Things get really crazy when it turns out Mi Young is pregnant. From her first time. Which she doesn't remember.

This drama is all kinds of sweet, sad, and perfectly acted. The side stories are even hilariously cute (like Lee Yong and Jeon Ji Yeon ending up together!), and the two leads have incredible chemistry. I won't give away the ending, but let me just say for a long time I saw this story ending completely happy or completely sad or completely bittersweet, and I hated that I had to wait to find out! This is the first Korean drama that I actually cried watching! Of all the sad plot lines in K-dramas, I didn't shed a tear or even feel real sorrow until I watched Jang Nara. Definitely, definitely watch this. I didn't even really get to mention the fact that Choi Jin Hyuk (my favorite from "I Need Romance") as Daniel Pitt, is the second lead who is a neighborhood oppa to Mi Young and in eternal search for his long lost little sister, also named Kim Mi Young. Ah! This drama is just too good not to watch!

[In the Mix]: October 2014

Ah, October 2014. It's been a crazy month so far. Finishing at my last job, visiting college once more, moving across the world, starting a brand new job in a brand new field... It's been fun! Of course, with long periods of travel comes a lot of music. I've mostly been revisiting old favorites or discovering old songs. A few new ones but mostly older ones. Some remind me of the last time I lived abroad; others I have simply not heard of until now.

미친거 아니야? |2 PM (Go Crazy) Love this song! It reminds me a lot of their "Hands Up" hit from 2011. They just look like they had such a blast learning the choreography and performing on stage! It's a shame they didn't win any music show awards! 

"Countdown"| Beyonce- Slight throwback. This is just such a fun song! 

"Welcome to New York"- Taylor Swift- I'm so freaking excited for this album! 

"두근 두근"- La Boum (Pit-a-Pat)- Refreshing cutesy at its very best. I just love how fun this song is to listen to, and how unapologetically girly it is. I wouldn't do a whole playlist with songs like this, but one or two sprinkled out works just right. 

"Really Don't Care"- Demi Lovato- Such an anthem song, and perfect to listen to while scraping off wallpaper! Plus you gotta love a little rap break with Cher Lloyd. 

"Like I Can"- Sam Smith- His voice forever and ever... This is slightly more "upbeat" (but I feel like that's not the right word) than the others. 

"Rise Up"-Diane Birch- A good morning song to listen to while making coffee and putting together an outfit for the day. 

"하.니.뿐."- 2 PM- (ADTOY-All Day Thinking of You) This came out in the 2013 days I wasn't really listening to K-pop. I absolutely love it! It's kind of like 2 PM's I'm a Man now song. The dance kinda makes me laugh though. Watch the video, you'll see why. 

"Sunrise"- Norah Jones-  I forgot how much I loved her voice! What is she even doing these days, anyway? 

"Eyes"- TaeTiSeo- I do really like Holler, but I think the two I have on this list are my absolute favorite. I really love this sub unit--it's got a very sassy vibe to it.  

"Trumpets"-Jason Derulo- Awkward song to listen to with parents, great song to jam out to by yourself. I like what you did there with musical instruments, JD. 

"Out of the Woods"- Taylor Swift- OMG NEW T, SWIFT SONG!!! Just kidding. That aside, I really like this direction Swifty is going with her music. We all knew she was pretty much done with country after her first album, so it's refreshing to see her stop trying to balance country pop with pop and just going all out pop. It also seems like she's taking some serious inspiration from her birth decade, and this song is total proof of it.  

"Valentino"-Diane Birch- I first heard this song in Valentine's Day, and I still like it. It's one of those easy-listening, walk to work type songs that just makes you happy. 

"Wrong Feels So Right"- Carly Rae Jepsen- She needs another album stat. She takes pop to another level, and I love listening to all her girly songs.  

"Flowers in Your Hair"- The Lumineers- This is my--travel along the Korean countryside and gaze out at the mountains and sunset song.  

"Adrenaline"- TaeTiSeo- This is my alarm song. How can it not be?! 

"Come Get It Bae"- Pharrell Williams- I don't care how stupid this song sounds from its title to its lyrics, I can't stop jammin' out to it. 

"니가 필요헤"- K. Will- Slight oldie but goodie. I do love you, K. Will, I do.

[The Traveling Teacher] In Transit

My "Roll With It" Idea...

Goodness, getting from the Philadelphia Airport to my apartment in Namwon was a little bit crazy to say the least. I think if I didn't drill myself with, "Just roll with it," before leaving, I'd be one worked up mess. While getting abandoned by my driver in Madrid without any form of communication was a little traumatizing, it was so bad, I think every other new country experience I have will seem like a cake walk in comparison.

Alright, so actually physically getting yourself from your hometown to Namwon deserves a whole post in itself. You've gone through the headache of paperwork. You've gotten your contract, your passport, your visa, and any other necessary confirmations. You've booked your flight one way or another, and your bags have been packed four times. You're waking up at 2 a.m. from a quick nap because it's finally time. Months of preparations, changes, and a thousand goodbyes or see you for nows have happened. You're getting your behind over to the Land of the Morning Calm (or insert nickname for your respect country here). What happens?

Well, I can't really speak for everyone, but here is the following account of my story. There are no times associated with anything because I just lost track between the trillion time changes I went through.

On the Lilly Pulitzer Agenda

When it comes to picking out an agenda, I am by far the pickiest person in the entire world. I don't think I even get this picky about my clothes or food or shoes... Everything from the size to the number of lines per day to the paperweight of each page. I kid you not, I'm pretty much a brat. I know what you're thinking, "You're only saying this to talk up the LP Agenda, which is seriously so overrated and in the hands of every sorority girl ever, Plus all those Lilly Pulitzer fans who can't actually afford their absurdly expensive clothes." Wrong. And how judgmental! I'm talking to you about the LP Agenda because I appreciate the sheer work they put into it each year, and it is so far the best agenda I've owned.

Let's take it way back to seventh grade when I started really using the agenda my school gave us. It was the size of a normal piece of paper, so it fit perfectly stacked in with all my other books. Each day was laid out neatly with the top half for homework assignments and the bottom half with times (if my memory serves me correctly). I loved that it shrunk to a smaller size in high school, and I used to write out my assignments and To-Do's with a little box to check off in the corner. My day was pretty much ruined if someone decided to be obnoxious and write their birthday or something and take up the whole freaking space, and I absolutely refused to color all over my agenda in attempt to cover the pretty boring picture on the front. In high school I eventually transitioned to other agendas (though I can't remember which), and this led to college where we no longer received free ones anymore. I can't remember what I used freshman year, but I know I made up my own in a blank journal the summer beforehand. I do remember seeing the LP Agenda and toying around with the idea for a while. I may not like prints in my clothes, but I do love a pretty journal.

Finally, I was shopping at the mall and decided to roam about in the LP store just for kicks when I decided to get the LP Agenda for Aug 2012-Dec 2013. It was pink and green (my favorite combination), and I had yet to find the perfect agenda. Plus it had cute little stickers! I used and abused it until December 2013 when, in the midst of applications, my job schedule, theses, homework, internships, and job searches, I needed more space. Much, much, much more space. So I bought a huge one from Target for 2014, back to the size of my middle school ones. And that was honestly beautiful and laid out so nicely. Until about April or May when most of this work was finished, and I had way too much space for my agenda. Plus, I had stopped carrying my tote and started carrying my purse again, so it no longer fit.

Then came the LP Agenda once more as July rolled around. And returning never felt so good. They revamped the prints inside, and it's even more gorgeous than the first one I got. There's more than enough lines day to day, plus all the extras are perfect. I don't think it's very pricey ($28) considering you can use it for 1 1/2 years, and it's a nice agenda.

xoxo,

Samantha Elisabeth

Jeonju Hanok Village

This is going to be 3/5 of my weekend getaways! It was technically a training trip with other Namwon English teachers and our Korean counterparts, but it felt more like a field trip! I was lucky that the training happened to fall two days after I started working, so I got a little bit more of an "orientation" than just being totally thrown into the mix. We left our respective schools after lunch and met at the educational building to board a bus for the hour ride into the Hanok village. After we arrived, we went straight to our seminar room where we got an example lesson that involved vocabulary for tastes and a quick orientation on living in Korea. It was actually pretty fun, and our taste lesson involved blind tasting. FYI Ginseng is a rough, rough thing to taste blindly.

Afterwards we went to this restaurant for some stew and meet, our supervisor treated us to coffee, and then we had free time. Some went out to some bars, but I'm still a little jet-lagged, so I opted to walk around with a few people to explore the village at night. Jeonju's Hanok village is absolutely beautiful! It has a bunch of traditional style houses with different souvenir shops, restaurants, and other places. We also climbed up to Omokdae, a temple created to commemorate the place where the first king of the Joseon dynasty rested after his war victory.

The next day we had an official tour around the village where we learned about the different structures and the reasoning behind their designs after breakfast of beansprout stew. We also stopped by the Jeonju Catholic Church, which is considered the most beautiful Catholic Church in Korea. It was crazy because weddings were going on, and tours/the public was going in and out as though there weren't! My friends explained that Korean weddings are very...factory. You're in and out, people are usually talking throughout the ceremony, and it's all very quick. How unromantic! 

I'm not sure where exactly we went next, but we had a traditional food experience where we learned to make three temple food-- Ginseng Salad, a sort of rice paper roll, and a nut bar. Our head chef explained to us that what is important is that all these foods did not have any ingredients that were thought to create anger (like meat or onions). I loved the nut bar. The rice paper roll was okay (however its accompanying spicy mustard sauce was enough to make me cry!), and I was not a fan of the Ginseng salad (I'm still scarred from my blind testing...).

We then boarded up our bus and went home to Namwon where one of the girls was nice to enough to help me buy a toilet seat and show me where the local Innisfree is (more on that whole thing later when I finally do an apartment tour!)

18 Types...

Happy Friday! This video had me cracking up while I was eating breakfast this morning.

[The Traveling Teacher] Packing

Boy, oh, boy was packing difficult. I packed and repacked four times, and I still wound up paying a $60 fee for one of my bags being overweight. As someone who is a total clothes horse (I'm working on it!), I found it incredibly difficult to part with my wardrobe for a year. Also, if my plans of weight loss go accordingly, I may be saying goodbye to these clothes forever or be faced with a hefty tailoring bill. It was a bit cathartic, I will say, and if I had had to bring anymore suitcases or add anymore weight, I don't know that I would have survived the whole travel process. However, that post is for next time, so for now I'll leave you with some quick tips for packing up your life for a year!

1. Don't buy that big suitcase. Seriously that thing is heavy. If you go to the store and see the bigger size, get the one that would be considered medium. It's almost impossible to get the bigger suitcase under 50 lb. 
2. Check what you're allowed. I said this before on my old travel blog, but seriously check everything out. My flight to Spain? One checked, one carry-on, one personal bag. The carry-on didn't have weight restrictions. My flight to Korea? Two checked, one carry-on that had to be a certain size, and one personal item. Honestly, you don't need anymore than that. It might be nice to pack a lot and pay $150 for the third suitcase, but think about how difficult that's going to be to navigate in the airport and beyond!
3. Really, really shed away the clothes. Keep your wardrobe neutral, and prepare to mix and match. My wardrobe is honestly a lot of black, gray, navy, and white with a few items in colors like hunter green or pink. I brought a lot of different jewelry to "spice" up the outfits, but otherwise it's the definition of minimalist. Only bring what you find comfortable and what fits!
4. Don't overdue the shoes either! Oh man, did I shed my shoes. Over all, I bought two pairs of boots (brown and black), a pair of cognac heels, a pair of black flats, two pairs of sandals (cognac and black), a pair of leopard loafers that I love, a pair of brown booties, and a pair of Chucks. I shed some heels and extra flats in the name of keeping it simple and sticking to the shoes I know I'll wear a ton. I also know that buying shoes here isn't as difficult for me since I'm a 6-6.5!
5. Bring a lot of... Anything you're picky about and don't think you'll find easily here. For me that's deodorant (I only like Secret Gel), shampoo (I get dandruff easily, so I packed 2 things of Head & Shoulders), and toothpaste (I heard it's not that good here). 

More to come as I get into the groove of things here!

Arrived!!

I've arrived! Yay! I'll post a little apartment tour and go over how I physically got myself from Philadelphia to Namwon once I fully settle in!

[TV Talk] Scandal

Let me tell you a show you should probably watch. People told me for two years that I should be watching this show, and it took me until about mid-September to sit down with Netflix and start from the beginning. "Scandal" is amazing. A solid three seasons on Netflix, and the quality did not waver nor did characters or stories take any stupid turn. I rarely dedicate time to hour-long shows in the U.S. anymore since I watch so many sitcoms, and it's hard for me to be patient through that long of season. However, "Scandal" flew by in a week! It's just so good, and even the most annoying character is, in comparison to other annoying characters on shows, not that bad.

Okay, so summary. Olivia Pope (Kerry Washington, who is. stunning.) runs Pope & Associates, an investigative organization that basically deals with crises on a larger scale. Pope went to law school, and she also formerly worked for the Grant campaign while he was running for president. The team is compromised of individuals who, for whatever reason, essentially owe (or feel they owe) Pope their lives, and they are fiercely loyal to her decisions. Season 1 included Abby Whelan, an investigator who came to work for Pope after she helped her escape an an abusive marriage, Harrison Ford, a litigator who Pope saved from life in jail for insider trading, Huck, the tech guy who Pope helped out of homelessness and a former life as an assassin, Stephen Finch, a litigator who works for Pope after a nervous breakdown in his former office, and, the newest addition at the beginning of the show, Quinn Perkins. They handle all sorts of cases, and are seen as the ones to go to when all seems lost. They handle the President's sex scandal, murders, and more.

Additionally, through Pope, they are tied pretty closely with the White House. There's the Republican president, Fitz Grant, who is in love with Pope, his wife, Mellie Grant, who plays the party of First Lady to a frighteningly dedicated degree, and chief-of-staff, Cyrus Beene, who is also an old mentor to Pope. There are a lot of other recurring and later main characters in and out of the White House side, but the main tie is that Pope and Grant carry on an affair and are deeply in love for the duration of the show.

This show is incredible, though. Shonda is a genius, and the way the cases are laid out and handled are incredibly interesting. The underlying, season long story lines are done extremely well, and the secondary characters are just as lively as the primary ones (James Novak, anyone?). I can't decide if the political play is more insane here or in "House of Cards." My favorite character, besides Pope, is probably Cyrus despite the craziness he goes through. Bottom Line: You've got to watch this! 

[The Traveling Teacher] Why

{via}

I don't think I was 100% sure of my decision to teach abroad until early spring semester this past year. I had filled out a few applications for jobs over winter break without much luck (it seems in the respective fields I was anticipating entering, job hiring happened ASAP rather than waiting for graduation in May), and I was over all more concerned with finishing my classes with good grades, my two theses, my internship, my part-time job, my sorority, my friends, and my continuously growing girth to really focus on the job hunt. Before senior year, I had fiddled with the idea, but I was also scared of putting off starting my career.

However, I realized a few things during my junior and senior year that had me set on teaching. This may or may not sound cliched in a few parts, but it's honestly what I figured out upon reflection, prayer, and talking with friends. 

First and foremost, I wanted to be happy, or at least pursue happiness with the best chance of success. Was publishing, specifically editing, really what I wanted to do? Was working in marketing or advertising really a career path I could pursue? Did I really want to try and tap into the fashion world somehow? And how about location? Was New York City the place I truly, truly wanted to turn into home? Even with its polar vortex winters and humid-as-hell summers? And my career. What did that even mean? 

I also started to question what I wanted from my life. I mean, what difference did it make if I started my career at 22 or a little later? Did forming a 10 year plan do me any good? I spent so long on a straight and narrow path towards what I perceived as success (no, literally, I used to think, "I'm not gonna punch this chick because I would get in trouble somehow, and she is not worth me ruining my bright future over.") that I could feel myself burning out towards the end (or at least the end for now) of my academic career. I could see a huge difference from freshman year Sam to senior year Sam, and I didn't like it. 

Additionally, I thought about the dream I have held to since childhood. I want to be a novelist. I wrote this huge, epic book in high school (okay, epic for the YA non-fantasy, historical genre), and since then I've played around with ideas but formed nothing concrete. I would sometimes write, look at it, and wonder what the heck happened? I put off writing a lot, citing a lack of personal experience (but, seriously) and that hasn't changed in the least bit. 

So, here I am. I chose Korea because I only got six weeks the last time I visited. Beyond the fact that it makes sense the most monetarily, it is also the country that I have on and off been studying since 2010. I want to learn more and experience more of the culture both contemporary and traditional. I chose teaching because of what it offers, and that I have found myself in teaching positions since my first babysitting gig at age 11. I don't know what's going to happen after the year is over, and right now, despite my mind racing in three different directions, I'm trying to force myself not to worry about it.

I want this year to be my year of adventure. Of growth. I truly want to be a newer version of myself by the year's end (not a new person, but like when you update your iPhone to the newest iOS (oh, yes, I went there)). I could stay in Korea another year, I could pursue a masters, I could teach elsewhere, I could start my career. Who knows? I'm not going to answer that question for at least a while, and I'm going to force myself to stop planning and start living in the present. So, as my departure date comes near, here's to my year of adventure. 

#ArmCandy

Once upon a time, I was the type of girl who never wore jewelry. Never. My mom got be a gorgeous Claddagh ring one year for my birthday, and I promptly lost it at swim practice after wearing it for a day. Bracelets clanged too much against my keyboard/desk, and necklaces hit against any tabletops. I did manage to wear a pearl necklace for a solid year and a huge peace sign necklace all of my senior year, but other than that jewelry was a foreign concept to me.

Until I worked for a certain retail store that was all about the arm candy/arm party. I won a sales competition and got myself my first watch. All my managers wore theirs with such cute style--layers of bracelets of different sorts around their watches. I wanted to do that too. So, I raided my dusted over jewelry box, grabbing out long forgotten bracelets, and over the last few years I've built up quite a bracelet collection to bring with me. I thought I'd list some of my favorite sites for good bracelets.

• Alex & Ani- Of course! I will say, be careful of tarnishing, but as long as you take of your bracelet, it should be okay. I know some people are starting to think these are overdone, but I will never  be on that boat. First off, we really must support anything "Made in America" because that is such a dwindling phrase! Secondly, A&A have awesome marketing with providing each bracelet with a story. They make for wonderful gifts, and that story just adds a second layer.
• The Hungry Elephant- They're a very small company online right now, but I absolutely love them! They're a vegan company that strives to make the world a better place. Each month, proceeds from their sales will go to different organizations. The month I bought  mine, it was Oceania. This month is the Gentle Farm. Each bracelet has a meaning as well, this one with an animal based story.
• Pura Vida Bracelets-I like to think of this store as the TOM's of bracelet making if TOM's hadn't outsourced their work to China and kept it local to improve the economy that inspired its inception (can you tell, I'm not a TOM's fan?) The guys who founded PV was inspired when he took a trip to Costa Rica. A man was selling colorful bracelets, and the guys decided to buy a bunch to sell back at home. Now, it's a full fledged business. Every purchase helps support jobs in Costa Rica. Additionally, they often have bracelets related to causes so that some proceeds with benefit a certain charity. I bought a bunch of the simple ones called "Shark Tank" and gave them to my sorority family.

What do you think? Also, if you want a good watch, check out Fossil! Mine are obviously Michael Kors, but Fossil manufactures MK as well as a bunch of other brands. Plus they sometimes have great sales--like last week the Fossil Outlet had 50% off all MK watches in their store!

The Renaissance Faire

So, this past Sunday I decided last minute to go to the Renaissance Faire with some sisters and one of their boyfriends! I haven't been to one since early high school, and I've never been to the one in Annapolis. We got up early, grabbed some Evergrain, and headed out to beat the crowds. I forgot how much I loved it! I think it's a hazard of not having many English literature nerds of history buffs as friends. Anyhow, the nice part of growing up is having your own money to spend. Considering I never bought anything and barely bought food at RennFest in the past, it was nice knowing I didn't have to worry as much if I wanted to get different food or purchase a little souvenir.

One of the best parts was the food (isn't it always?)! Almost as soon as we got there, I got cheesecake on a stick. It's pretty magical if you love cheesecake. Of course, a turkey leg was mandatory. It was actually funny because one of my of my sisters was determined to get that leg before we sat down for one of the skits. It was so worth it, and so delicious. The last thing I grabbed was a peppermint stick in a lemon. Has anyone else heard of this? I've literally never seen or heard of it before this Faire, but apparently a lot of people (mostly from Maryland) view it as a common treat!

Anyhow, the one skit we did sit down for was The Dueling Fools. It was actually pretty hilarious, and the guys who do it are fantastic with their wit. Another of my sisters is a huge RennFest fan, and she was dying to see these guys. It was actually kind of cool because they recognized her after the show! 

Of course, there's also the vendors all around. I wound up getting myself this little journal with paper made from recycled clothing as a treat for my travels (not that I already don't have a bunch of journals!). The whole trip was an absolute blast! Don't know when I'll be back, but I kinda want to find some cool festivals in Korea. Think they might have something similar to RennFest?

Happy October!

Ah, October is upon us. Autumn may officially start in late September, but when people think of all things quintessentially fall (pumpkins, colored leaves, cable knit, hot cups of tea, hayrides) it's October. Additionally, I've noticed a particular quote, "I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers," has been making its rounds via social media. This quote will probably be stored in Buzzfeed's growing list of "Things White Girls Will Do in the Fall," but I highly approve of its growing popularity. My reason is simply this: anything that can remind me of Anne Shirley and L.M. Montgomery's beautiful novels gives me inexplicable joy and happiness. I like to think that the strong influence of L.M. and Louisa May Alcott in my pubescent years provides a balance between wanting to be that chick in a Chanel suit on Wall Street (which is an extreme I'll never pursue) and wanting to make homemade everything and live on Prince Edward Island. I read the Anne series a little later in life (i.e. late middle school), and I fell head over heels in love. Anne was my kindred spirit, and I still remember so many little things L.M. wrote throughout the novels that I love to revisit. She dreamed the way I dreamed, and I loved being taken on the journey from her later childhood to later adulthood. I squealed when Gilbert was finally permanent in her life, I cringed at her embarrassing follies, and I sobbed when her son died in the last book. I never really had a "best" friend, person, or kindred spirit the way I saw, but in those rough years of early adolescence, characters like Anne were the best friends I lacked in reality (that sounds a lot more pathetic than it actually was, I promise!).

So, in honor of Annie and her new found fame in October, here are some of my other favorite quotes/phrases from the book

"Some people are naturally good, you know, and others are not. I'm one of the others." 

"It's been my experience that you can nearly always enjoy things if you make up your mind firmly that you will." 

"Isn’t it nice to think that tomorrow is a new day with no mistakes in it yet?"

"One can't stay sad for long in such an interesting world, can one?"

"Kindred spirits are not so scarce as I used to think. It's splendid to find out there are so many of them in the world."

"Life is worth living as long as there's a laugh in it."

"Dreams don’t often come true, do they? Wouldn’t it be nice if they did?" 

 "If you can’t be cheerful, be as cheerful as you can."

 "Well, anyway, when I grow up, I'm always going to talk to little girls as if they were, too, and I'll never laugh when they use big words."

 "You mayn't get the things themselves; but nothing can prevent you from having the fun of looking forward to them."

"She makes me love her and I like people who make me love them. It saves me so much trouble making myself love them." 

"It's good advice, but I expect it will be hard to follow; good advice is apt to be, I think."

 "I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers. It would be terrible if we just skipped from September to November, wouldn't it? Look at these maple branches. Don't they give you a thrill--several thrills?"

"Good night, dear Lake of Shining Waters. I always say good night to the things I love, just as I would to people. I think they like it. That water looks as if it was smiling at me."

"But I just went to work and imagined that I had on the most beautiful pale blue silk dress — because when you are imagining you might as well imagine something worth while…"

"All the Beyond was hers, with its possibilities lurking rosily in the oncoming years — each year a rose of promise to be woven into an immortal chaplet."

"Look at that sea, girls--all silver and shadow and vision of things not seen. We couldn't enjoy its loveliness any more if we had millions of dollars and ropes of diamonds."

"I read in a book once that a rose by any other name would smell as sweet, but I've never been able to believe it. I don't believe a rose WOULD be as nice if it was called a thistle or a skunk cabbage."

"It is ever so much easier to be good if your clothes are fashionable." 

"We pay a price for everything we get or take in this world; and although ambitions are well worth having, they are not to be cheaply won, but exact their dues of work and self denial, anxiety and discouragement."

"It's nicer to think dear, pretty thoughts and keep them in one's heart, like treasures. I don't like to have them laughed at or wondered over." 

 Happy October, Everyone!