Fictional Women I Adore

Inspirational women in reality are amazing, but what of the women that we read/see in our favorite books/TV shows/movies?! I think that fictional women have even more influence than the ones we see in reality, because we are simply more exposed to these characters and we, as humans, consciously or unconsciously, emulate the characters we admire and relate to probably a bit more than we should.

So without further ado, here are the heroines that have inspired me, relate to me, and whom I admire dearly:

MacKenzie McHale - The Newsroom

Being the Executive Producer (EP) of a primetime evening newscast is my dream job. I could be an EP for the rest of my life, and I would die the happiest woman who ever lived. MacKenzie is so fantastic at being EP for News Night. She delivers the important stories right, and makes the critical decisions (with Will McAvoy, anchor and managing editor for News Night) like no one else. She was also a reporter for quite some time before her EP gig and got stabbed in the stomach while out in the field! I have no idea why, but I find that quite noble. She's sweet, sour when she needs to be, sassy when necessary, and she knows what she wants and has the conviction and determination to get it. She is such an inspiration. Not to freaking mention her beyond-cute office romance with Will. I know office romances are distracting as hell and basically always a bad idea out in reality, but I can't help wishing that I was part of an "Ultimate-Journalism-Power-Couple" thing.

Nyota Uhura - Star Trek

This character is no stranger to Political-ish. What do I not like about Uhura? She's basically the only main woman on The Bridge on the Enterprise. She is a vital part of the crew and she does her work like nobody else. She's an expert on alien linguistics, acts as Communications Officer for Enterprise, and a lieutenant, no less. She kicks butt. She's awesome. You can't tell me otherwise. She's also in a really nice relationship with Spock. It's cute as cute can be. Alright, I'll stop talking about relationships now.

Elizabeth Bennet - Pride & Prejudice

She's smart, witty, and won't marry for money, regardless of what anyone tells her. She wants to find true love, and she luckily finds it with Darcy. She's also extremely sassy, independent, and she's not afraid of what society thinks of her. The society that surrounds her is beyond superficial, only taking interest in women who sew and draw and do useless things. Rather than employ herself doing those things, she reads and harvests knowledge for no one else's pleasure but her own. She's fearlessly herself. In other words, she is different. And she's not sorry for it.

Sloan Sabbith - The Newsroom

Oh, to be Sloan. One, she's really freakin' gorgeous. Two, she's smart as hell when it comes to money matters. A PhD in Econ? Beauty and brains. Also, her sassiness is unparalleled. I love when a woman enters a male-dominated industry and just kicks ass. She'll school anyone on any fiscal matter and do it in 4-inch stilettos and a pencil skirt, no problem.

Katniss Everdeen - Hunger Games

It's Katniss. No commentary or explanation needed.

Maggie Jordan - The Newsroom

Yes, I do realize that there are now THREE Newsroom characters on this list, but I forgot to care. Maggie seems like a strange choice, but being promoted from intern, to assistant, to Associate Producer  (AP) for News Night is pretty freaking impressive. She didn't get it because she was lucky either. She was loyal to News Night when no one else was, and she got rewarded. She brings awesome story ideas to the table, and is extremely hardworking. Even though she has panic attacks, takes Xanax to subdue those (and she picked journalism, probably the most high stress job there is) and she's in a really weird relationship with who I like to call "Douchebag Don," she is invaluable to the staff. And I KNOW I said I wouldn't talk about relationships anymore but her chemistry is Jim Harper is the cutest thing I have ever come across. The are soul mates, just like MacKenzie and Will. Yeah, I know office romances are bad news, but like I said at the beginning of this paragraph: I forgot to care.

Spencer Hastings - Pretty Little Liars

This seems like a weird one (which is why it's at the bottom) but hear me out. Out of all the PLLs, she's pretty much the only one who has any sense of logic (in the TV show and the books). Also, she's the only one who's not excessively vapid. She cares about grades and takes pride in her intelligence. Sure, she's hooked up with a couple of her sisters boyfriends/fiancés BUT she makes up for that because she gets in a relationship with Toby and she's able to see past his weirdness and alienation to see a really sweet dude!

And there it is ladies and gents. There was A LOT of Newsroom feels tossed in there, so I thank you for putting up with that.

It's 2014 in a couple days, can you believe it? If I don't post until then...

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

xx

It's the little things...

There's a bunch of little things that I just adore about life, and here's a list of all of them (because I feel like listing them):

• Peppermint anything (Mochas, Bark, Gum, anything)
• Shopping (Window-Shopping, online shopping, and actually buying stuff)
• Pad Thai
• Sweet Potato Fries from The Kettle or The Counter
• Coke Zero
• Coffee anything (the drink, the ice cream, anythinnnnggggg)
• Twinings Tea (Earl Grey and Lady Grey)
• Spotify
• Gummy Worms
• Fiji Water
• Tumblr
• Reading a new book
• Re-reading a beloved book
• Cats who sit on your lap and purr and don't scratch you
• Having zone-out time with Netflix and your couch/bed
• When you wake up and have a few minutes to just lay in your bed and truly enjoy it's warmth and unparalleled coziness
• Gossip seshes with your best friend(s)
• Late-night car drives and blasting the radio with friends
• Getting ready for a night out or an event
• School sports events (you can't beat the Friday night lights...)
• Spending time with people who you can be yourself around
• Good-looking guys who are actually nice and stuff like that
• New shoes, esp. boots and high heels
• The sound your heels make when you walk
• Swiping your debt/credit card (a dangerous thing to like...)
• That salon-hair smell right after you get it cut
• My phone
• That satisfied feeling you get when you're done applying your makeup and you look straight-up awesome
• Taking drives down PCH
• Compliments (giving and receiving)
• Being flat-out proud of your work (in school and out of school)
• J.Crew and Madewell
• Reading physical newspapers
• Going to Barnes & Noble
• Rain
• Snow
• The plethora of pretty colors during Autumn
• Coats
• Warm showers
• That empty-and-sad-but-semi-satisfied feeling you get when you finish reading a book
• That awesome feeling you get when the thing you were trying to remember finally pops into your head
• Knowing that people honestly care about you

I could go on and on, but you know what they say: "Pay attention to the little things in your life, because looking back, the little things might become the big things."

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

xo

Have a "Correct" Christmas

Fighting: 2013's Holiday Caroling

This is something I have wanted to blog about for awhile, and I think the Holiday Season is the perfect time to do it.

That's right ladies and gents: Political Correctness. Oh yeah, I'm going there.

Society may want me to walk on eggshells and tiptoe through the tulips on this subject, but I refuse to. I'm sick of it. I'm tired of having to censor what I say.

I have one question: Why is everyone so so so OFFENDED? ALL THE TIME. People of all colors seem to be offended. People of all genders. Heck, animals and objects are offended. Why in the world is everyone so damn sensitive. 

Schools can't have images of Santa up in classrooms. We have to call ugly christmas sweaters "ugly sweaters" if you want to have an "ugly sweater" day in December. I want to put up a mini-Christmas tree in my school's journalism room? No can do! We can't even call it a Hanukkah Bush. I can't even buy a "Holiday Fern." Why? Because the school afraid that people are going to get offended and sue them.

I'm all for the separation of church and state. Forcefully putting students through any type of serious religious promotion in a public state-funded school is unlawful. But decorations with good ol' Saint Nick on them aren't allowed? Really?

I honestly can't identify a person at my school who gives a damn. I'm pretty sure teenagers don't care if they see a Santa or a mini tree. I'm pretty sure they'd find it cute and festive. Why can't everybody just bring in their own decorations? Christmas is December 25th... so it's pretty fitting that most December decorations are connected to Christmas. But do students want Hanukkah represented? What about Kwanzaa? What about other religious holy days? The more the merrier! Bring your decor! Let's all celebrate together!  What I don't get is that schools in general seem to preach and simply love the idea of multi-culturalism, yet they block every sort of religious expression when it December comes around... talk about "Bah-Humbug."

But I'm not just talking about schools here. The whole "What race is Santa?" debate? WHY DOES IT MATTER SO MUCH? WHY? SOMEONE TELL ME. Santa has been an icon since forever, and he has been depicted as a big, fat, jolly-looking white old dude with a long ass beard. It's always been that way. People weren't offended before, why are people so offended now? And I have done my research, and it turns out that Saint Nicholas is of Greek nationality. Should Santa be white? Should Santa be black? If we want to be factual, he actually should be Greek. 

My point is that December celebrations are really good-natured and everyone has their heart in the right place. In my eyes, the real Scrooges in this situation are the people who claim that one religious group can't do a certain activity because it is offensive. Does someone want to bring a menorah to school? How about something to represent Kwanzaa? Scientology? Heck, why not! I'm Roman Catholic, and I'm not offended one bit.

We should be evolved enough to speak up if the term "Secret Santa" offends us or makes us feel uncomfortable. You wanna call it "Holiday Homie" instead? I'm down with anything at this point.

We shouldn't have to tiptoe around people. We shouldn't have to be hyper-sensitive about every issue. We shouldn't have to spend our holidays worrying about being "racist" or "intolerant." That's not what the holidays are about. I just want the freedom to express my merry December spirit, uncensored.

P.S: Aren't we technically offending Atheists by saying "Happy Holidays" considering they don't believe in any sort of holy celebrations? Idk...

Happy Holidays/Christmas and a Merry New Year! :)

The Christmas Wishlist

Here goes nothing... (from left to right, top to bottom)

Cath Kidston - I guess their kinda like the Vera Bradley/Lily Pulitzer of London... (idk) But anyway, they always have gorgeous prints in the cutest bags and mugs! My favorite styles are the Book Bag and the Cedar Mug, I already have those two in the Royal Guards print! (too freakin' cute) I'm dying over this snowy-London-Holiday print! I want right now!

Royal Apothic: Kensington Garden - Keeping with the British brands trend, I found this little gem at Anthro. It smells divine! Such pretty floral scents! I took one whiff and I was back in the gorgeous English gardens I perused this past summer!

TIME: Inside the Red Border - I adore TIME magazine for a plethora of reasons. Whether it be the photographs or the layout or the page design or the actual articles, I just find that magazine so awesome! If I were to work at any mag, it would be TIME without a doubt. An informative and pretty coffee table book about this publication is right up my alley.

Pride & Prejudice - I lost my copy of one of my favorite books. It would be really nice to get another one, especially in this pretty Collector's Edition Hardcover. :)

J. Crew Everything - If I get anything J.Crew this Christmas, I will be the happiest of happy campers. But come items that I have been crushing on for months is the Schoolboy Blazer in Navy, the Cashmere Boyfriend Cardigan (I looooveee youuuuuu), and the beautiful Cambridge Turtleneck Sweater.

Kate Spade - I love Kate Spade, and their tech accessories hold a special place in my heart. They don't sell this cute Dictionary case for iPhone 4S (sad face) but I love it nevertheless.

J.Crew Shoes - These. Shoes. Oh my. Love at first sight, for sure.

LET THE CHRISTMAS CHEER BEGIN!

Union Issues

Unions are great, they really are. But I believe unions have their time and their place. Those times and places should not involve students.

To give you a bit of backstory, the teachers union at my school is severely butting heads with the district, due to the fact that the district is attempting to postpone negotiations regarding salary and the teacher evaluation system until after School Board Elections. Of course, this is a straight-up douche bag move and pretty damn idiotic of them. They are also shoving the idea of "iPad integration" down the throats of all teachers, classrooms, and students in the district, which is also completely idiotic and further proves that the district is seriously not listening to what the teachers and students are saying. I mean, let's be real. The middle school in my district, who jumped in head-first into this iPad education thing, had a drop of 18 points on their API score this year. EIGHTEEN POINTS. The largest drop they've had, ever. Clearly something is wrong and clearly the district refuses to see past their bureaucracy. 

I support teachers because I believe that they are truly a foundation of success and growth later on in life. But in reaction to all this bull that the district has been pulling, they have refused to work past their pay. Their doors are closed at lunch, meaning school clubs cannot meet in classrooms. This is the second time they have done something like this. Last year it was a bit more dramatic, they wouldn't do any letters of recommendation for the seniors. Obviously, this method got the district to meet the teachers halfway, but I think it was still morally wrong.

To use students and their parents as political pawns? To utilize their anger and frustration as a means to an end? I don't approve of the teachers' actions. Teachers do noble things, but that does not make it right for them to pull cruddy political moves. This is in no means ok. Some might say that this is all about the students and their well being, BUT it still does not give teachers to, in essence, use students as leverage to get whatever they want, in this case, it's higher salary and an upper hand in negotiations. Some might even proclaim that teachers were basically boxed in a corner, and this move is a move of desperation. Once? Maybe. But twice? I don't think so. This is the second sequential year that the teachers have pulled this move. This doesn't look like desperation to me, it looks like savvy political strategy.

So, my conclusion is that both parties are at fault here. The district and the administration continue to be, well, the district and the administration, and teachers now think it's ok to pull moves like these. I say that the district needs to man up, keep to their word, and be straight forward with the Teachers Union. They deserve that much. In addition, I think the Teachers Union needs to cut the crap and stop using pupils to their political advantage. It's not right. It's not ok. Be truthful teachers, you are not getting the students involved to benefit them, you are using them to get what you want, which has nothing to do with our education and has everything to do with the size of your wallet and the benefits you receive. Do I believe that teachers need a higher salary and more benefits? Yes, absolutely. But do I validate their current actions? Do I think it's ok to use students as political leverage? Heck no.

Playlist #2: Neo-Flapper

Imagine: Paris, 1925. You walk into a seedy, but sincere enough bar. As you step inside, you can't help but notice the place is a bit snappier and sharper than the rest of Paris, perhaps with an aftertaste of the modern era lingering in the background, despite the authentic people and fixtures inside. Your eyes are lined, your hair is swingy and swishy, and your silvery sequined dress shines brightly in the dim light of the smoky bar. The skirts are short, the heels are high, the liquor is pretty loose. You have a drink in one hand, a cigarette in the other, and a F. Scott Fitzgerald look-a-like chatting you up with his witty tongue and sparkling eyes. What's the band playing behind all the hub-bub?

They are playing this playlist.

Fangirl: A Book Review

Rainbow Rowell really did it... She stole my heart!

Fangirl is such a teenage girl book, such a fangirl book, and such an amazing, enrapturing story! 

It's doesn't have a lot of intellectual prowess, and not a lot of thinking power is needed for this book. Purely a fluffy, fun read. But with all of the heavy analyzing required for mandatory school readings, fluffy readings are right up my alley.

It basically tells the story of two identical twins, Cath and Wren as they enter their freshman year at University of Nebraska. Cath & Wren were super-fangirls for the fictional Simon Snow series (it's basically like Harry Potter with vampires in the mix). They do the whole fangirl bit, and they write fanfiction too. Turns out Cath is brilliant at writing and is supremely internet-famous for her Simon Snow fanfiction, written under the pen name "Magicath." But once they enter Uni, Wren grows out of fangirl-hood and becomes your stereotypical drunk college girl while Cath is still desperately stuck inside her awkward self.

As the story progresses, the twins hit many bumps in the road, especially having to deal with their eccentric, overworking single-dad and the whole deal with their elusive mother (don't want to spoil the deets). Not only does Wren branch out, but so does Cath, especially in the boy department. Cath basically in a weird place with these two guys she meets, Nick and Levi, who are both cute and charming in their own ways, and she has to choose what is best for her: a life alone or a life with someone special? On top of all that, she is major struggling in her Fiction-Writing class. You'd think fiction writing would be a no-brainer for someone who writes tens of thousands of words of fanfiction, but she butts heads with her professor and faces another choice: giving up/staying in your comfort zone or treading in uncharted waters/being fearless?

This book was pretty damn good on a lot of levels. All the subplots were just awesomely weaved into the main story. The fangirl elements really pulled the story together and just made the story more relatable! The relationships were actually believable. None of "all-this-sugary-syrupy-sweetness-gave-me-an-actual-headache" relationships happened. There were sweet moments, romantic moments, rough moments, awkward moments, and just an overall great depiction of the trials and tribulations of a relationship (or, at least, what I think happens during a relationship). The guy Cath ends up with is just wonderful, and he's believable enough to make you hope that there's some guy like him out there for you.

The only thing that disappointed me was the ending. I felt that it was a bit rushed, and maybe a little incomplete. But then again, maybe I was just a bit unsatisfied with the ending because I wanted more. (I really didn't want the book to end!) Perhaps both factors are at play.

Despite the ending the book is worth the read. For fangirls, it's an absolute must! It's so adorable, you'll love it! For non-fangirls, just give it a shot! It's a good book all around, truly for everyone...

And I'm still buggin' about the cover art! So pretty! The illustrator is Noelle Stevenson, AKA "gingerhaze" in the tumblrverse. She does many other fandom-geared doodles and even does some pretty legit art and comics! You can check out her stuff here.

Sherlock/Doctor Who Cross #lovethistoomuch

JUST READ IT, OK?