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goodbye 2014. you won't really be missed... 

hello :) It's weird how every year I can't fathom how another year has gone by. 2014 was a huge year for me: graduation, college, moving, death in the family. So to celebrate and anticipate 2015, here are 14 important factoids, events, and memos that I learned this year.

1. College is a wonderland. Really, I love it so much. It can be tough sometimes to be by yourself in this place you just moved to. I think I was lucky in that Smith is so wonderful, caring, and accommodating. It really feels like I've found a second family within my house community. It's nice to have the freedom to choose your own courses and decide when to do things.

2. Do not mix lights and darks when it comes to alcohol. I learned that quite the hard way. Learn how to hold your drink (I'm still learning that bitter lesson).

3. Be courageous and bold, it might surprise you. Some of my most memorable experiences have happened per chance. At 2am a couple of my housemates went to a local burger place (unironically called Local Burger) and it was a really fun time, laughing at the outside world and some of the ridiculous things guys do.

4. Visit art museums. Really, they're SO COOL. I love being there even for an hour, two hours. There's so much to explore and so much historical culture to take in. I'm definitely going to start visiting the Smith art museum more too. I recently started to going to musical events too and oh my gosh. I used to think it was silly to go to concerts but the energy is so alive!

5. Be silly! I've become familiar with a few new faces by just simply being silly. I bonded with this girl over how excited plants make me in the botanic garden. Some girl and I had a great conversation about hot chocolate in the dining hall. I was sticking my tongue to catch snowflakes and this girl passing by smiled and stuck her tongue out saying, 'me too'. It's funny how these are the things I immediately remember instead of the grades I got or how much time I spent studying for an exam (studying is way important too though, I'm not saying it's not).

6. Everything tastes better late at night. Fact. Ramen parties at 11 should always happen.

7. Keep in touch with people you care about. It might seem intuitive and dumb of me to mention this but really.. it's harder than you think. Sometimes I have to keep reminding myself to call my parents or a skype a friend but it always makes me feel better. I use my computer's calendar a lotttt. Those reminders are pretty great.

8. Do not forget to do laundry. . . laundry buddies (like gym buddies) are a necessity. Laundry nights usually turn into mini dance parties blasting Taylor Swift to drama time complete with face masks so now they're a much more enjoyable thing.

9. Swiffering is really enjoyable. I'm trying to find my own style/refine what I like and what looks good and my room is always undergoing a changing process. I'm getting really into interior decorating and making zines.

10. Short hair should be tried out at least once. Maybe I'm biased because I like short hair. Embrace who you are! I realize I'll never be that girl people always say "whoaa you're like a supermodel! whoaaa" (I've sat next to those girls one too many times). But you know what, I'm okay being a super intelligent (okay maybe that's my ego speaking), hipster, geeky girl who can wear shirts with cats, rainbow zebras, pineapples, etc.

11. Dreams change, and that's okay. For my entire life almost I wanted to go into journalism. Senior year I suddenly wanted to do policy related things. And now I definitely want to do something related to biology, genetic technology, food policy, environmental policy. I'm unsure of the exact path I want for my next four years and that's scary, exciting, liberating all at once.

12. Only buy clothes that you love. It saves you the pain of running out of closet space and a bankruptcy. There are so manyy cool people at Smith. Not that kind of cool you see in stereotypical teen movies but a real kind of cool. They don't care about what the world thinks at all. They're so focused on what they're doing in their own life and their dream. They have their own style and you just take in their cool vibes when they pass by. Hopefully one day some first year will see me pass by the sidewalk and just say "whoaa that girl is too cool."

13. There are very few moments in life where you can dress up, spend hours doing hair and makeup, wear heels that are clearly too tall for you. Cherish them. I really miss getting all dressed up for senior ball. I wish there were more formal parties in college... or even opportunities to wear a nice suit (I miss my short lived debate career).

14. CHERISH 2015!!!! Okay maybe I didn't learn that this year but I know how precious time is. I don't know where half this year went. College really went by like a blur. I'm gonna start writing one thing a day that I appreciated/enjoyed/remembered about each day. Maybe I'll post them here too to keep myself on track. 2014 was kind of a lousy year. . . but I know 2015 can be better. WOOOOOOOOOOOOO. 

a r t s y

Hello everyoneeee. Guess who is back in the Bay? After a grueling first semester of adjusting, exams, new classes, new friends, and Northampton craziness, I AM BACK HOME. It's so wonderful to be back in my own bed and take showers without shoes on. WONDERFUL. I spent all of today being adventurous and going out with my friend! We had a fantastic day out and it feels like it was just yesterday we last hung out. Due to modern technology, distance is a lot easier to cope with. So I just wanted to share a couple photos from the city that I call home, San Francisco!

beanie shopping 

cream puffs are happiness.
no one can tell me otherwise
(look at that pure shock and excitement)

it's Christmas time xx

have you ever seen a more beautiful palette? 

happy youngjoo 

I cannot wait for what is more to come. happy holidays xx

Sine Curves

Life is kind of like a sin curve. Look at those mesmerizing ups and downs, ups and downs. Whatever comes up must go down and basically I'm at the lowest point anyone can go (hopefully). I feel like there's nothing to look forward to or celebrate in my daily existence. I keep myself barely grounded with thoughts of home but even that weeklong stretch seems too much to overcome.

I don't know what propels me to share the contents of my personal life to random people on the interweb, but here I am. Because ultimately this blog functions as a diary for me and a place for me to come back to reanalyze events after much time has passed. If you don't want the feels, just move along and wait another week for some kind of better post.

Contemporary Art

When I visited the Museum of Fine Arts, I had to sit down and write poetry because I was so overwhelmed with feeling and emotion. I wasn't planning on sharing this poetry ever but the occasion presented itself marvelously. The spoken word poetry club hosted an open mic and invited PHIL KAYE. PHIL KAYE. Can we just take a moment to appreciate that I met PHIL KAYE? Phil Kaye is such a talented poet and it's so different seeing his poetry in person vs just on Youtube. UGH spoken word poetry is alive!! 

So I shared this poem and it was a really good Tuesday night. Tuesday was a really good day <3 

Contemporary Art

you once told me that

the future is here, everything we dreamed of and more

people and technology have begun to exist as one entity

the lack of newspapers, conversation in coffee shops, music with audible lyrics

we carry little boxes that free us from the mundane world

A false sense of connection because we are physically attached to the internet

Inadequate to be just human, our transformation to cyborg is almost complete

the death of culture is imminent, as my mother always said

it seems we as a species have lost the capacity to feel, love, live.

I sit in English class where they tell me that

art is dead, dead as the nail in a coffin, dead as mackerel, dead as the Roman Empire

perhaps it was the first thing to go

where is the stylistic technique, the realistic nature of portraits, the imagery, they ask with angry eyes.

have we become so desperate that everything frivolous, pointless, absurd has meaning?

how is a blank canvas with a single blue stripe art?

art no longer resembles anything.

it has devolved into something beyond our grasp of understanding

art is clearly dead.

I sit on a practically empty bus but manage to hear a hysteric girl saying that

love is dead, dead as the nail in a coffin, dead as mackerel, dead as the Roman Empire

it’s hard to argue with her when love is as simple as swiping left or right after a two second impression.

how is that we trust a calculated computerized formula more than feelings, inclination, emotions?

because of feminism,  apparently chivalry has evolved, changed, and completely disappeared

because in this world of formulas and mechanic impulses we can no longer comprehend what real unadulterated emotion feels like

love is clearly dead.

Friendsgiving in Boston

I had a really fantastic break in Boston! Smith College is about 1-2.5 hours away from Boston depending on if you take bus, train, car, etc. A wonderful friend gave me a ride there and I had a fantastic time just wandering around Boston. I have thoroughly missed Smith though. MIT (my brilliant friends attend) just doesn't have the homey vibe a women's college has.
There are only three weeks left until school ends and welp I am totally excited.

Trip highlights:
Tuesday-I arrived around 5:30 pm and went out to eat sushi with one of my high school friends that I haven't seen in a long time!! It was so nice catching up with her and window shopping. I ended the night at an awkward room party completely sober.
Wednesday: I went to Flour, which is this cute little bakery that also sells sandwiches and soup, etc. The afternoon was spent talking to a friend literally for hours. At night, my friends and I helped make molded chocolate for their dorm thanksgiving.
Thursday: Dorm thanksgiving! It was a lot of fun and fancy dishes. I had such a good meal thanks to their house master :) We then watched Mockingjay which was an okay movie. The second movie was definitely superior. At dinner, I went to a friend's family friend's house and we had a Chinese thanksgiving with turkey. It was fun but I definitely felt overwhelmed by all the Exeter (the really expensive boarding school) people that were there. It's hard being from a really great women's college that people don't really know about.
Friday: I had lunch with more high school friends in a cool little hole in the wall sandwich place. I got to shop around Cambridge and then we went to the Museum of Fine Arts! The Museum is incredible. I mean not as incredible as New York, but definitely worth visiting. I got to see Chinatown at night and had a pretty great dinner.
Saturday: I went to Prudential shopping area. We didn't have time to go see the skyline but it was fun nonetheless. I almost missed my bus back to Smith but somehow made it back safe and alive.

It was a really great trip! I still don't feel like doing work though even I'm back. . .
On another note, Phi Kaye (the poettt) is coming tomorrow and I cannot wait!