University

Today is Monday. I skipped yesterday because I was feeling tired and short of breath all day. I think it has something to do with the weather. It was raining off and on all weekend. I tried to get out and exercise, but it didn't really happen. That made me lazy all day, which led to me eating a lot of crap. Eating crap makes me feel sick and panicky. I am still suffering from it today, but I am doing better.

On to good news. I have been contacting schools (including CSUN) to figure out my options. I might still be able to finish at CSUN, but most likely, I will finish at an online university with a BS or BA in elementary education. I have found some good options as far as that goes, so I don't feel so trapped. As frustrated as I am to be stuck with regards to my education, I do have to stop and be grateful that I had the opportunity to go to college at all.

Rain

This doesn't in any way make me unique, but I love when it rains. I love the smell, I love being in the rain- as long as I don't get too cold. I love turning the heater on in the house, or cuddling up in front of a fire to get warm. I also love the rain, because it provides a small excuse to get nothing done. :) Of course, if it is something important, that still needs to get done. Something small, like dog walking, can be blown off though.

Art

I may not be an artistic genius, but I am skilled at sketching. I have been drawing horses since I was in at least second grade. I am not exaggerating. I have proof. Because of this, I have been able to expand my artistic skills to other things I want to draw. I am becoming better at drawing people and dogs. I am not sure if I actually have an artistic "gene" or if just the sheer repetitiveness has made me improve? Either way, it makes me happy, and occasionally it makes other people happy as well.

This is what I thought a horse looked like, when I was in second grade.

Yak

No, not what you do when you feel sick. I am referring to the shaggy Asian bovid. I finally got to buy some (much to the chagrin of my bank account that is back to less than a dollar-again) yesterday at the farmer's market. I spent the time grilling yak burgers last night, and I had so much fun making it. My mom said that she liked it, and my dad said that he would try it. Not sure if he did or not. Either way, I can cross that off of my bucket list. Next would be either elk, or bison, or rabbit, etc. Until I have tried so many meats that it no longer registers as unusual.

Confused

Yesterday was a very confusing day for me. I spent the day looking for a psychologist online. My mom helped a bit, and then I told my dad when he got home...I forgot to post because I was so overwhelmed. I didn't know what to do for most of the day. It really threw me off. The good news is that I did as I was told and got it done.

As for today, I am reminded that even if I don't have a bunch of friends, I do have one friend that has been there for me through a lot of bad times. I have known Walter most of my post-high school life. No, he is not perfect. after living with him, I have learned not to idealize him anymore. He is a person with flaws, just like everyone else. I will say that he is the closest I have come to finding someone who is perfect for my life (not romantically). I love him, and I am so glad that he was wearing that ASL shirt, or I might not have ever gone up and talked to him. That stupid shirt saved my life. :)

Coconut

The title says it all. Delicious, good for your body, fun to eat, and a great stress reliever. I buy coconuts every once in a blue moon, because I am almost always too broke to buy it.

One of the things I enjoy the most about coconut, is the fact that you get to smash it. After a very stressful day, I took great pleasure in throwing my little coconut as hard as I could at the ground. Then I calmly picked up the pieces and walked inside to enjoy my treat.

Following the Crowd

I found this picture online, and I thought that it was very profound.

I realize that I am better at making friends and meeting people than I was when I was younger. This is amazing for me to realize, because I was under the impression that I was getting worse. When I was in high school, I had my first real crush. I was so over the top, because we were friends, but I realized that he did not like me back. :( I continued to flirt with him anyways, until he moved out of the city. I looked around, and noticed other girls with boyfriends. I noticed friends hanging out, giving gifts, making plans, studying together, and wondered why that wasn't happening to me. I did have great friends in High School. Don't get me wrong, but it was more along the lines of 'friendly' than actual friends. I had one "Best Friend", and one or two people that I spent time with occasionally outside of school. I have noticed that I was different since about fourth or fifth grade. Even though people liked me, they never seemed to like me enough to ask me to hang out with them. As I entered college, I had a different problem. I had people that wanted to hang out with me, but we would stop hanging out after the semester ended. Either that, or they were the "wrong crowd". Eventually, I found my niche with the people in my major, since we had multiple classes together each semester. It made me feel good to realize that I finally found people that I could relate to. I had my first kiss just after my 21st birthday, and was in my first relationship September 2011. Since then, I have been in a few almost relationships, and one really amazing relationship. 

That being said, as I go through life, I meet people and they help me grow. The reason that I wrote this here is that I want to remind myself that even though I don't have people texting me 24/7 or "liking" my statuses on Facebook, doesn't mean that I am unloved, or unpopular.

Board Games, Not Bored Games

One thing that I have done to improve my quality of life, is join a group on meetup.com. I joined an art group, a group that supports LGBTQ individuals, and- last but not least- I joined a group of people that get together every Saturday night, and play board games together. They are such a fun group of people. Tonight is no host night. That means that we bring our own games to play. I am bringing Phase 10, and possibly Backgammon. I can't wait.

TGIF

It is almost the weekend. Saturday and Sunday are the two days that I can have a legitimate-ish excuse to be lazy and not look for a job. Today, however, I still have things to do.

The reason that my life is amazing today, is that I am getting really far in training the dog. I say "the" dog, as opposed to "our" dog, or "my" dog, because my mom has made it abundantly clear that Mosa does not belong to me. Zoe did. We bought her together before I moved out for the first time. I can do whatever I want with Mosa, but I have no authority over what happens to her. Any way, I don't want to start complaining, so I will stop there. Today, I took  Mosa on a really long walk, and we went to the dog park near my house. She behaved so well. I was swollen with pride.

Just A Lazy Day

I am tempted to complain, but since this is a blog about the great things in my life, I will refrain.

Since it is still early today, there is nothing yet that has happened to post. That being the case, I will write about my past.

I love to travel. I have been to many places. I have been to Europe, Mexico, Hawai'i, and all over the United States. Now, I don't remember every place I have visited, and I am far from saying that I have been everywhere in the US. I will say that, so far, there is nothing preventing me from wanting to explore more. One day, I will take a cross country trip with some friends, and visit all of the popular places, and then go to some places that we decide. That way, we can feel so cool when people ask where we went.

Say Cheese

What better way to tell people that your life is interesting, than by telling them that you spent the day selling and eating cheese? Every Wednesday, I go to the farmer's market downtown. There is a guy there that sells cheese, and I am always hanging around his stall, so today he asked if I wanted to help sell the cheese. It was so much fun. I learned about running a farmer's market business, and met some amazing people. I hope he asks me to help again next week.

Because I am an adult

Normally, I complain about being an adult, but there are a few times in life that I am happy to be one. For example, even though the situation is quite overwhelming, I am glad that-as an adult- I can take care of my financial problems by myself. I currently have debt that has gone to collections. After having my parents try to help me and fix it, I just called collections, and tried to work with them. The outcome is not my ideal situation, but at least something is happening. I hate that it got this far, but hopefully soon, I can remedy the situation, and be proud of myself. If my insurance accepts the bill, I should only have to pay about 25% of the bill. I can do that. If not, I can still pay the bill, but it will take much longer.


I am also happy for Worthy Wednesdays, and Wednesday Farmer's Markets. Once the mail comes, and I cash a check, I can go to the farmer's market and but some really good food. (And sample some not-so-good-food).

Once again, I am thankful to be living in Oregon; in a town that is big on outdoors, and fresh farm food.

In Sync

Good news! My mom (the shopper of the family) has decided to go caveman as well. Now, I don't have to worry about her buying well meaning crap. I still plan on eating the crap that she already bought, because waste is bad, but it shouldn't effect my plan. By the time that I eat most of the stuff that is Paleo unfriendly, it will be time to shop again. Plus, I am still working on breakfast. In October, I will be focusing on lunch. I can still eat whatever I want for snacks, supper, and dinner. By the time I get to January (moving month) I should be full Paleo. Here is my eating plan:

September: Focus on Paleo-friendly breakfast, and smarter choices for other meals. Anything else is a bonus

October: Focus on Paleo-friendly breakfast and lunch. Continue to make smarter choices during other meals. Experiment with new foods (i.e. elk or bison)

November: Focus on Paleo-friendly breakfast, lunch, and supper.
Try to have Paleo-friendly dinners too, but don't worry too much about it. Last month for CW snacks and desserts!

December: I am older and wiser. Eat all Paleo as much as possible. Experiment with new foods, and have fun! Don't worry if you slip up.

January: Plan a Paleo-friendly shopping list for CSUN. Don't let yourself fall into old habits. Invest in co-ops and try to find out about any farmer's markets in town. Don't worry if they don't have bison.

The Primal Blueprint

       I have never considered myself normal. At times, this can be quite frustrating, but sometimes, it's quite nice. For example, if I were the normal twenty-something college student, I would think nothing of consuming coffee and Top Ramen all day.
       I actually like going outside and doing things. I never really got into online games and the like. I just don't like the idea of staring at a computer screen, and getting caught up in a fake world, when the real world has better graphics ;).
      I was in the middle of looking up "primal lifestyle" and "primitivism" in Google, when I stumbled upon something I had heard of before, but associated with dog food. That was "Primal Blueprint" Basically, it takes the idea of cave men, and the way they lived and compares it to the way we live in modern society today. There are ten "laws" to follow, and they are pretty easy. The rest is up to you.
I already talked about it in an earlier post on my blog, "42 reasons to be or not to be me..."
I bought the book, and have been reading it non-stop. I also have subscribed to a YouTube channel, staring an Australian woman that has been on the diet for the last 18 months. She is really energetic and fun to watch. I think I want to find an American that does it, just because it would be more accurate to my lifestyle. Believe it or not, there are a lot of differences between American living and Australian living.
That is my bit of awesome today. I am still deciding on a way to sign off. In my other blogs, I sign off by saying goodbye in another language. I have covered Spanish, French, and Italian....So, I guess

Arrivaderci <------ Italian

Everyone's Journey is Different

I have a tendency to look at my life and say that there is not enough adventure in it. That is why I have started this blog. Every day, I will write at least one thing that makes my life interesting, amazing, fabulous, wonderful, etc. These can be past or present things. I will also post various quotes, pictures, and videos that I feel describe my life.


One thing that makes my life worth it, is that my parents live in Oregon. There are countless amazing places to go hiking, swimming near or under waterfalls, horseback riding, and everything that brings you closer to nature.

   Yesterday, my mom and I spent almost the whole day hiking with Mosa (my parents' ChowChow) we went to see this towering waterfall. I got to climb really close to it. The trail to the waterfall was very cool. It was not just the normal packed smooth dirt path. It was very interactive. It was bumpy, and windy (not with wind. The other windy- as in with many twists and turns), with steep sandy drops, and places that are very narrow. Much of it went over or under fallen logs. Closer to the falls, there was slippery, slimy, green moss that covered everything. We met these two older ladies that complained of being old and fragile, but cut through the trail quicker than we did! Even the road to get to the falls was fantastic. Lush green plants everywhere. The tall trees, and huge ferns, made me feel as though I were on a journey to some fantasy faerie land.

 I can't believe this place is real! My mom used a filter on the second one, but it really is that gorgeous.