Chestertown

Officially done with this awful, awful semester!

One of my best friends from home, Kate, came to visit me Friday afternoon, and I got to show her around my college's adorable town. It's seriously gorgeous this time of year, especially right at the water front.

I loved walking around downtown, and we even ate at my favorite place, Play It Again, Sam, or as we call it, Sam's for shorthand. And no, it's not my favorite just because it has my name!

Now it's just time to enjoy the little bit of time I have to relax and then figure out what I'm doing tonight. Did I mention I'm going to a Taylor Swift concert tonight? 

Leonardo DiCaprio is My Soul Mate

Okay, so like a lot of kids who go to small private colleges, I am well aware of the phenomenon that is The Great Gatsby. As an English major, I an also aware of its literary merit whereas I'm quite confident most are more obsessed the the excess party and glamour image portrayed. I'm going to be blatantly honest. I read the book once in high school, circa junior year, and while I liked it, I do not remember it leaving as much an impact on me as I thought it would. I probably need to read it again now (summer reading, perhaps?) now that I have more an appreciation for Fitzgerald's style, but I'll let that be in the future. Currently, I would like to focus on the fact that I definitely went and saw the Baz Luhrmann movie tonight, and I enjoyed every freaking minute of it.

You have to understand Baz's works to appreciate what he did with Gatsby. I personally have a love-hate with Baz. I hated Romeo + Juliet despite loving Leo and Claire. I, however, loved Moulin Rouge  and what he did with the epic feel of Australia. If you go into The Great Gatsby without understanding his over the top way of directing a film, I'm warning you, you. will. be. over. whelmed. And, it's totally okay if you hate his work. You're just going to probably hate this too. I loved this adaption (never saw the other one, though I should...). I thought some parts were a bit awkward--Tobey Macguire's lines were occasionally a little off for example. I thought Carey Mulligan was perfect as Daisy, even though I love Carey and I kind of can't stand Daisy despite her ethereal beauty gig. Oh, and Isla Fisher was such a pleasant surprise as Myrtle (which is an awful name, by the way). I wish she had had a little more screen time! However, the main point of this post is not necessarily about going over GG's plot points. It's Baz, and you're going to love it or hate it. The point of this post is to express why with every movie I see with him, I'm thoroughly convinced Leo Dicaprio and I are soul mates.

And I don't mean this romantically, though if that followed as a result, I wouldn't be averse. No, if you've read Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, you'll understand my view. Lena thinks her grandfather is her soul mate-- it's obviously not romantic. That's how I view Leo. I think he's just so interesting. Just from the roles he picks alone, he would be such an interesting person to talk with. You could learn so much from his experience, from his choices, from his life. Apparently he has a frat boy side too what with his occasional partying and affinity for thin, blonde models. He's got to be an onion, and it would be the greatest thing ever to be friends with him! I'm thoroughly convinced that if we ever met and became acquaintances we would totally be close once the star-struck thing wore off.

Okay, enough rambling. This post is born after a week long hell of final papers, and my mind is a little...dazed right now. But does anyone else feel like this with someone else, or am I just the alone weirdo?

Image Sources 1, 2

Tips to Survive Finals Week

Okay, so I know some lucky college students are already done and over with it, some seniors even graduated, but finals week is young here at my college. Everyone goes a little insane: wearing the same yoga pants a few days in a row is acceptable, the library is the hottest place on campus, and there may or  may not be an emotional breakdown or two. I personally have four papers due by the end of the week and a cumulative ecology exam on Wednesday. Not to mention I have a few more internship applications to complete... I'm ready to burn all my books, curl up in my bed, and call it a day.

But, obviously, life must go on, and even though my dreams of becoming a bohemian writer (or I guess they're calling it hipster these days) is still there, I must complete college with good grades. As an Asian (even an adopted one), A's are acceptable, B's are Bad, and anything below that is just failing. So, even though I will never have as hellish a finals week as science majors, here are my tips to surviving this awful, awful week:

1. Work out! If you already have a regular schedule, stick to it no matter what. If you don't, START. It doesn't have to be long--thirty minutes on the elliptical and a 15 minute shower and back to studying.  Just make sure you're breaking a sweat. It seriously helps with concentration and relieving stress--I promise that's not just a thing to say.

2. EAT Healthily-- Try and make sure your DH meals are filled with veggie goodness. I'm not kidding when I say healthy people have more energy.

3. Don't forget to indulge a little though. Come on, if there's one week that calls for a little extra serving of ice cream or one more cookie, this week is it. Don't go overboard, but don't feel bad about a little extra sugar.

4. GET SLEEP. For the love of all that is holy, cramming in two semesters worth of notes in a night isn't going to be effective in the least bit.

5. Make To-Do Lists. At the beginning of each day, make a to-do list of what you must do. Today, for example, I wrote on my whiteboard:

• Finish at least half of my Spanish paper
• Write out Guide for Ecology Exam
• Finish Intern Applications
• Start on Business paper
• Work on bibliography for Spanish paper

6. Keep organized: Even taking time to clean up all your folders and throw out anything unnecessary works. I also like to try and clean my room (though right now it's a mess). A cluttered room=a cluttered mind.

7. Get rid of your social media sites! I made my big change the password to my Facebook so I wouldn't go on it until after this week is over. As much as I want to look at pictures from formal and whatnot, I must resist the urge. I should probably do the same for others...

8. Dress comfortably. But try to not look like a total slob. I always feel a little more energetic when I at least look somewhat nice--even if it's for a day in the library. Everyone has comfortable clothes that aren't jeans. Maybe if you're in yoga pants, wear cute top or something to balance it. Just make sure you're not trying to focus too much on your outfit--use that brain for more important things this week!

That's all I have got for now. Anyone else have any interesting tips? Good luck to all, and may the odds be ever in your favor!

[Sorority Stuff] Formal Time!!!

I know, I know! I must be boring you with all my sorority-related posts. I promise it will calm down a bit once summer comes. April/May are the months besides recruitment that are soror-crazy!

Anyhow, last night we had our formal. It was at this little theatre in town, and, as always, a blast, if not a teensy bit too short for me. The thing about sorority formals is they're a lot of fun. You're with sisters, so you're immediately a lot more comfortable than with the whole school and their judging eyes (though nothing compares to the anonymity of discotecas in a foreign country!), and they're choosing the music, so it's definitely better than the too-much-rap-crap played at regular dances.

And, of course, it's a prime opportunity for picture taking!

My wonderful City Family!

Obviously, a sorority arm is necessary.

My dress is actually one of the first pieces Lauren Conrad made for her collection for Kohls way back in the day, purchased from Ebay! And my shoes are Ann Taylor (but the faux-leather one!).

Día de Fútbol at WC

Hello all!

So this past weekend was actually quite an eventful one (and, obviously, I'm not reporting this until right now in the middle of the week!). I did a whole bunch of stuff, but mainly I wanted to introduce something I've been sort of a part of since my freshman year. Día de Fútbol is an annual event at my college, and we held it this past weekend. It basically brings in the Hispanic community around Chestertown for a day of literacy, soccer, and food. This year I played photographer and used my little's camera all day!

Here are some of my favorite shots: