Posted on by saraelizabeth419

John Green’s The Fault in Our Stars (YA)

In The Fault in Our Stars, John Green tells the story of Hazel Grace Lancaster, a teenager living with a cancer that will eventually kill her, and the boy that she falls in love with, Augustus “Gus” Waters. Hazel lives on oxygen tanks and lung machines, as she has stage 4 thyroid cancer that metastasized in her lungs. For the past few years, she has been taking the experimental drug Phalanxifor, which has been her miracle drug, keeping her alive. Gus also has suffered from cancer, losing a leg and a potential basketball career to osteosarcoma, but he is in remission. They meet at a support group that Hazel’s parents force her to attend; Gus was there supporting a friend of his, Isaac, who was losing his eyes to cancer.

At first, Hazel and Gus are just friends; both exchange their favorite books with each other. Gus’s book is a novelization based on his favorite video game, whereas Hazel’s is, what she feels a literary masterpiece, entitled “An Imperial Affliction” – of which she is obsessed. Gus soon becomes obsessed too, and they eventually embark on a journey to Amsterdam to meet the author himself, but at the same time learning one of life’s hardest lessons.

The premise of this book sounds a bit depressing, and at times it is just that, but it is also inspiring. Despite their circumstances, Hazel and Gus fall in love and support each other through the ups and downs of cancer, and in attempts to fulfill last wishes. It is not a novel for the light-hearted, but it is amazing nonetheless. I leave you with a quote!

“I would probably never again see the ocean from thirty thousand feet above, so far up that you can’t make out the waves or any boats, so that the ocean is a great and endless monolith. I could imagine it. I could remember it. But I couldn’t see it again, and it occurred to me that the voracious ambition of humans is never sated by dreams coming true, because there is always the thought that everything might be done better and again.”

Posted on by saraelizabeth419

Are You Ready for Winter?

Like it or not, it seems that winter is hitting us full force and ignoring the fact that it is about a month too early, and that the temperatures today are usually reserved for the middle of winter, you know, February. I don’t quite remember the temps from this time last year, but I know that they were definitely higher than this. Despite the big snowstorm we had last winter, and only a short period of plunging temps, I feel that it is inevitable that this year it will be bad…especially if today is any indication. So, how are you preparing?

Normally when it gets cold I get in a baking mood. Using my oven both warms up my apartment on a chilly day, and fills it with the delicious aroma or cookies or muffins. I envision cozy nights in watching movies with friends, red wine, fireplaces. I think of warm comfy pjs and furry Uggs, phone conversations that last forever and winter adventures just to prove to yourself that a little chill (frigidity?) doesn’t scare you.

What is your favorite winter memory? Is it with a best friend, a significant other, family, or a night you did something just for yourself? I have a few favorite winter memories, ones that I keep close to my heart, that fill me with hope and warmth and love.

Being ready for winter isn’t just about buying a new coat or scarf, and it isn’t just about the parties and the cheer. Winter is the time for reflection and improvement. It’s the time when you look deep into yourself, see how you’ve grown as a person, how life has changed you and determine what new improvements can be made.

What is your favorite winter memory? Are you ready for winter?

Posted on by saraelizabeth419

Panda Obsession

A few months back, I was watching the news as I was getting ready for work and I saw the cutest things ever.  Twin baby pandas were born at Zoo Atlanta; the first ever twin pandas in the US.  Also, twin pandas in general are not very common, more often than not, one of the twin cubs doesn’t survive.

Ever since then, I have been obsessed.  I followed the pandacam for a bit, but was never satisfied with what I saw – because really, there wasn’t a lot going on on the pandacam (so sad).  Zoo Atlanta keeps a blog about the twin baby pandas, and with every picture I see, I love them more and more, and want one of my own.  Or at least to hold one of them.  Did I tell you already that I’m obsessed?!

I am well aware that, although they are cute and fuzzy right now, and easily cuddleable, one day they will be huge.  I am also aware that it is probably illegal to have a panda for a pet, even if it is just a baby.  For about a week I was considering adopting a panda from one of the wildlife websites, and getting a t-shirt with a panda on it.  I haven’t done either of those things yet, but I’m still thinking about it.  What I do have in my possession though, courtesy of my friend Melissa, is a panda pillow-pet, which arrived last week.  It’s not a real baby panda, but it’s cute, cuddly, and it won’t get any bigger.  And.  I love it.  I know, I am a huge dork…but I don’t care!

Posted on by saraelizabeth419 · 1 Comment

To Tattoo, or Not to Tattoo?

Ask anyone who knows me and they will tell you the same thing: I am not a tattoo girl.  Sure, I played around with temp tattoos when I was a child, putting them on with a damp sponge or cloth, as per the instructions.  But, the last couple times I did that, I remember wanting to get the temp off of me asap, going insofar as using rubbing alcohol to get it off, only to leave my skin pink and sensitive.  I’m the girl who has never done anything permanent to her body with the exception of getting her ears pierced once.  I could never have been okay with having multiple holes on my ears, and aside from that, the only other thing I had ever thought about doing was a belly ring.  I didn’t do that because I have a birthmark slightly above my belly button, and felt that that was decoration enough for me, and I am completely happy with my decision.

So, back to tattoos.  Other than the fact that they are permanent, and removing them is a painfully long and expensive process, another reason that has always stopped me from getting tattoos (other than just not liking most of them) is the needles.  I have a fear of needles.  When I was younger, my mother would take me to the doctor for a checkup, and when it got to the point where they would administer my yearly shots, I would run away, literally.  I would run out of the room as fast as my little legs could carry me.  I would run under the nurse’s desk and reception.  I would just run.  Of course, eventually I would be found, picked up and taken back into the room to get my shots, but I wouldn’t be happy about it.  Today I no longer run away from doctors, but I do always almost pass out while getting a needle or when having blood drawn.  I wish I wasn’t so squeamish, and I know that it is a mind-over-matter thing, but at my age, I still have not been able to master this.  I even have sat in while other people were getting tattoos, and got the same feeling in the pit of my stomach and had to turn away.  It’s kind of embarrassing, but I always warn people ahead of time.  Blood and needles are soooo not my thing. 

Why am I considering a tattoo all of a sudden?  Don’t worry, it’s not because I’m going through a mid-life crisis: I’m way too young for that!  I guess it is more of a, if you see something that you really like, then you allow yourself the possibility of changing your beliefs for this one exception.  I am a firm believer that nothing is written in stone, and that just because I’ve said for years that I dislike something doesn’t mean that I am never going to change my mind about it.  My friend Melissa and I were talking about this last week.  We both have been thinking about getting the same tattoo, in the same place.  We have a couple of reasons for this: we think that the area that we are considering is sexy and we both really love the symbol not just for the physicality of it, but also for its meaning: perfection, equilibrium, long lasting friendship or relationship.  Melissa and I both think that is beautiful.

Instead of running to the first tattoo parlor that we see, because I have been a non-tattooer for as long as I can remember, I went onto Amazon last week, found the symbol that we want and ordered it for us to try on together, as a sort of test run for the real thing – if we happen to do it.  The temp tattoos are a bit bigger than either of us would like to have – if we do decide to go permanent they would be significantly smaller – but I think that they are a great way to see if we really are willing to do this.  I think that I definitely am, but as I said before, I always hesitate to do anything permanent to my body, so I will wait and see.  When you have a bff who is as good to you as mine is, sometimes you end up doing things that you would never expect yourself to do…and have a blast while doing it.

Posted on by saraelizabeth419

Vitamin C Facial Radiance Capsules

On my most recent trip to The Body Shop, I was in search of a facial serum that had an extra boost of moisturizer. With the impending winter upon us, I know my skin looses moisture. I’ve tried all different things, even slathering a little vaseline on dry areas. Vaseline works, only I have always been afraid that using it too much on my face would be more detrimental than good – after all, it seals in the skin and doesn’t allow it to breathe, so for as much good as it does, I think using vaseline on the face is only a once in a while option.

Hence, The Body Shop. Of course, before going I had done a little research. I was torn between a normal serum, and one in the form of capsules. After speaking with a sales associate there, I was convinced that the capsules were for me. They ensured an exact dosage so as not to put on too much at one time, they were more concentrated in vitamin c so they would be more efficient, and they were capsules which I thought was cute. So, I bought them: Vitamin C Facial Radiance Capsules.

The way to use this product, is after showering and under your normal moisturizer; they’re supposed to act as an extra moisturizer, and also draw yours into your skin more. The first night that I used the capsules, I was in love. They did exactly what I was told they would; made my face velvety smooth…and I saw a little glow too.

I used the product two more nights in a row, obsessed with getting that velvety smooth feeling again and again, but I, who hardly ever breaks out, ended up with two visible pimples. Defeated, I retired the capsules for a few weeks, not knowing what to do with them. Then, Sunday I had a brilliant idea: I could still use them, just not multiple days in a row, and a bit sparingly.

I know my skin. Yes, it sometimes needs a little extra moisturizer, but there’s only so much concentration of a good thing it can take at once. The Body Shop’s Vitamin C Facial Radiance Capsules are amazing, but you need to know how much or how little your skin can take of them at a time. But one thing you will always get, is the velvety smoothness. Well worth the trials of calculating the percentage of use you need.