B.

B is for Books.

I am a reader. My mother has always said that I practically taught myself to read and write at the age of 2. Words captured me in a way nothing else really did. The bookshelf in Beauty and the Beast was my favorite part of the movie until I saw the Beasts' library and then I was really glued! Like a cross country athlete running to get that natural high, I read for the adrenaline rush. My very first chapter book ever was the original story of James and the Giant Peach which has lots of beautiful illustrations. I will lose myself in the young adult section of the library at school, a place all to myself. My favorite part of reading is when I find that one book, the one I can't  put down, the one I just have to finish before I do anything else. One day I'm going to have a huge library in my house full of classic books and new books and books I've collected over the years. Books are a very good thing.

Lou

Bullied.

Dear Reader,

I know my blog has been a little blah lately because I'm trying to only write when I have something to say. Well I do. It might be a little morbid and a little broken-record, but I really want to talk about this and hear what you have to say.

Everyone, I don't care who you are, has been bullied at one time or another. We all do it. We all talk about someone behind their backs, maybe not as much as others, but we have committed a social crime. I'm 19 and I'm still bullied, I'm just mature enough to handle it better than I did in middle school.

In middle school I was a target of my ex-boyfriends NEW girlfriend. She wanted to make damn sure that I wasn't going to steal him back from her... which I never had plans to in the first place. She got her volleyball team to jump me in the hallway one morning and tell me that I was so ugly that no guy would ever look at me. They told me that if I ever talked to her boyfriend again that they would be back and hurt me again. I was so afraid of these muscular tall girls that I didn't say anything. I thought it was funny that she had sent her volleyball team because they were bigger than her, but she wasn't even there. She would write terrible things about me online, post conversations she had about me that were horrible to places where I could see, and created an online hate page about me.

Me and my friends were just appalled about what was going on. We tried to fight back, say equally mean stuff etc. but it never ended. I can promise you that I never even considered hurting her or posting hate pages. I did bump shoulders with her in the hallway a lot, sometimes she would come out of nowhere and jam into me. Besides venting about it to my friends a lot, I didn't really know how to make it stop or "even the score" so to say.

Then one day this boy had dumped her and that's when I got hurt. She and her friends found me in the bathroom at lunch and started screaming things I couldn't hear. "You had something to do with this" and "you're the reason she's heartbroken" and "home wrecking slut" and many more. Then someone grabbed my arm and swung me around into the sinks and then into the towel dispenser. The girls were scratching my arms where they grabbed me and were just swinging me around and around into things. That's when I hit my head on the edge of the paper towel dispenser and started bleeding all over the place. When I started to cry they all scattered. A teacher found me.

I can still remember my mothers face. It was a mixture of anger, horror, revenge, and sadness. She asked why I didn't tell her and I said that I honestly didn't know it would get to that point, and it wasn't like I hadn't been mean back. My mother demanded to know every name and for someone to pay for my stitches. I can still remember my mom chewing out the other girls mother, waving around the print-outs of the hate page her daughter had written, and then demanding action. The other girls mother tried to defend her daughter but the bruises on my arm and the cut on my forehead silenced her soon enough. She was expelled, the volleyball team was suspended until further notice, and there was legal trouble for her about the website she made about me.

I still remember crying over the mean stuff that not only her, but people I thought were nice, people I didn't even know were saying about me. I still remember feeling anger and resentment at everything that had happened. I didn't handle it well... because by the time I had it was too late. I just remember crying so much because it was so mean.

Now I'm older, in college, and there are still mean girl everywhere. There's no beating them, no running away. I can handle myself better now. I roll my eyes at the immaturity. The way I see it, is that I've already dealt with it once before with girls who were at least acting their age... 13. I am not willing to act with college girls being bullies. Never again. I'm a lot stronger.

If you've ever been bullied, how did you handle it? I'd love to hear your story.

Lou

A.

A is for ART.

Lou

Something Awesome for Earth Day.

I was going to post on Earth day about something Earthy, but I couldn't think of anything to post that hasn't been done before. I mean, definitely recycle your tabs so you can make fantastical bracelets that support the environment and sick children. But I love to read, and frankly these Earth Day bookshelves make me want to read more.

Happy late Earth Day!

Lou

10 Things to Know About College.

10 things you should know about college, good and bad.


1. You can change everything.

Everything. I mean it. From your roommate, your advisor, your not-so-great professor, your major; to your clothes, your friends, your healthy habits, and your hobbies. Change is a great thing in college. Use it.

2. Do not expect to graduate in 4 years.

This is one of the biggest lies your guidance counselor will tell you. I do not know one person graduating from school in only 4 years. You could if you took 18 credits every semester (which is insane, you'll never sleep), didn't do any extra-curriculurs, got straight A's, and did every summer and winter intersession course they offered. You could graduate in four years if you didn't pick up a double major or a minor. College is fun so you'll be glad to stay for an extra year, but it's also a lot of money so maybe not so much

3. Not everyone is your friend, but always be friendly because you'll never know when you'll see them again.

This is so important! I have seen so many of my friends burned because they were rude to someone who turned out to be a professor's assistant or co-captain of the lacrosse team. Plus, being friendly is just a great life rule.

4. College is not like the movies.

The movies portray college as this amazing place where everyone is way more accepting and you'll be friends with the first people you meet forever. There are great parties you'll talk about for generations and hot ladies everywhere. Yes, college is great. Yes, for the most part people are more accepting because there are more people to meet that would be a great match for you. No, don't trust everyone you meet even if they seem great and you've hung out with them a couple times before, trust me because i've been bitten in the butt over this one a lot. Yes parties are fun, just don't do something you would definitely not do sober. Yes, there are very attractive ladies... and hot guys... in college.

5. Make sure you put your grades first and social life second

Try and visit your advisor often to know where you stand. Do something that will make the professor remember your face because classes become easier that way when your more comfortable with the professor. Actually read the required reading for homework even if it's not graded in any way because then studying for the big stuff will be so much easier! Get tutors in every class that's not your strong suit even if your passing, you'll be glad later.

6. Get involved.

College is what you make it. A girl in my hallway didn't even make it one semester because she was homesick and missed her boyfriend. She laid in bed all day and didn't go to any of her classes. So she wasted her parent's money and dropped out. When you get involved you meet a lot of people and being homesick takes a back seat. College is so much fun, so get out there and play a recreational sport, join a club, or go jogging with a friend because the only way it's going to get better is if you use it for all it's worth!

7. Be a good roommate, not a great one.

I'm not saying to be a perfect roommate because no one ever is. Just keep your side of the room semi-organized and don't borrow their things without asking. By the way, there is definitely a difference between messy and dirty, you don't want to be the latter. Try to keep your mess on your side of the room and don't leave trash around. Keep the music and t.v. on low volume at night and please for the love of peanut butter do NOT bring your friends in the room to watch something on t.v. and laugh really loud while your roommate is trying to sleep... it's plain rude for everyone. If you do have a roommate problem, tell your RA first and if it still doesn't work out, switch roommates. You don't owe it to them to stay, make sure your happy with the living situation first.


8. Utilize your tuition

Your tuition pays for a lot of things like your room&board and meals, but most importantly your classes. Every time you skip a class that means you just wasted $. Your paying for these classes, or someone is, so you might as well go even if you don't feel like it. Try not to get 8 a.m. classes that way you're not tempted to sleep through them. By the way, tuition also pays for counseling. So if you want a regular counselor don't be afraid to ask because they are there for you.

9. You are not on your own at college.

One thing you'll notice about college is that the only adults you'll see around are the professors in classes, lunch ladies, and campus police. Besides them, college is ultimately run by students. There are more student workers than campus faculty. The student council makes a lot of decisions regarding campus activities, honor programs, and athletics. To me, this concept scared me. I was always told in high school that in college I had to learn to be incredibly independent because I was an adult now. When I had an issue at school regarding minor sexual harassment I wasn't sure if I had anyone to go to or if I had to just deal with it on my own like an adult. No. The school cares. There are always faculty that can help you if you need it with a ton of resources for whatever the situation is. Just because you are in college does not mean that you are suddenly on your own to deal with every decision by yourself.

10. Never ever keep any illegal substance or contraband in your room.

This is just a no brainer. The consequences could result in expulsion or legal trouble, it's really not worth it in the end. You may think you've hidden it well, but anything could happen especially with a group of 400 19 year olds living in the same building.

Here's me in college, floating rubber ducks in a bathtub with my 1st semester roommate.

See? College is fun!

Lou

Singled Out.

Ever felt like this?

yeah, me too.

Lou

Book Trailer for FGT.

I had my big group presentation today in Young Adult and Adolescent Literature. This was the project that I was worried about working with my best friend... we didn't really get a long. After some insinuated comments and lots of late nights the presentation turned out FANTASTIC. There were five components to the project. 2 book reviews, 2 classroom ready activities, a PowerPoint, and a book trailer. I was in charge of the book trailer. After showing it to my class it got absolutely glowing reviews. Many a weary hour was spent working on this trailer, getting the timing just right, citing all of the sources, transitions, editing the music etc... but it was worth it. The group that went after us had a trailer that didn't really flow or look like they spent much time on it. But I am so happy about how mine turned out without much help from the other members. I think my professor really enjoyed it.

Without further ado: Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe Book Trailer by Fannie Flagg

Lou