Resourceful

I was appalled to realize how many glass Air Wick air fresheners my family goes through—-and has gone through! Years and years of unnecessary waste in landfills!—so I highly recommend this.

I was filled with panic when I saw all of those glass vials in the trash (similar to the inarticulable panic that I felt when I really thought about what chemicals might be in my Panera apple/vegetables-and-fruits-that-we-consume-in-general). Fortunately Google had my back upon searching “Reuse Air Wick.” 

FAMILY/Forget about me; I love you.

This has been like the year of Death. My next door neighbor, Jim, passed away, my Mama-la (maternal grandmother) passed away, my other next door neighbor, Peggy, recently passed away. It’s been extremely sad and nothing dredges up my former life as a water fountain like a funeral. Funerals are awful, terrible events that people only subject themselves to out of love. (Truly, as soon as I stepped foot in the church my first thought was to ask myself why I was there. Sadness is uncomfortable!) But it takes a village to raise a kid and I was lucky and honored that Jim, Peg, and my grandmother were in mine.

Summer evenings, Bike bike bike on tree lined streets

Summer evenings, Bike bike bike on tree lined streets

Beautiful (rainy) skies over wonderful days

Beautiful (rainy) skies over wonderful days

teentakeover:

Girl Model to air 24th March on PBS!A highly recommended watch.
—Maddie

The worst part about this documentary is that Nadya was relatively *lucky*. She had a film crew to aid in translation if the situation became truly desperate and she can share her story. That can’t be said for the many other girls who were/are/will be in similar positions. There was also an interesting connection made between scouted models and human trafficking that I had not previously drawn. My old roommate, Aleks, and I were on something of a human trafficking bender post-Taken and another human-trafficking film (Trade). We had tried to volunteer with this anti-human-trafficking group in Pittsburgh but ultimately failed. The failure itself says something about being grateful. It was ok for us to fail because human trafficking did not/does not impact us directly. But I couldn’t help but think: my sister just turned 13. Would she be ok in another country, not knowing the language, how to navigate, etc.? No, of course she wouldn’t. Airports are fun for native English speakers but for a fresh faced 13 year old from Serbia? Anxiety-inducing is more like. 

All in all, I really appreciated this documentary.

teentakeover:

Girl Model to air 24th March on PBS!A highly recommended watch.

—Maddie

The worst part about this documentary is that Nadya was relatively *lucky*. She had a film crew to aid in translation if the situation became truly desperate and she can share her story. That can’t be said for the many other girls who were/are/will be in similar positions. There was also an interesting connection made between scouted models and human trafficking that I had not previously drawn. My old roommate, Aleks, and I were on something of a human trafficking bender post-Taken and another human-trafficking film (Trade). We had tried to volunteer with this anti-human-trafficking group in Pittsburgh but ultimately failed. The failure itself says something about being grateful. It was ok for us to fail because human trafficking did not/does not impact us directly. But I couldn’t help but think: my sister just turned 13. Would she be ok in another country, not knowing the language, how to navigate, etc.? No, of course she wouldn’t. Airports are fun for native English speakers but for a fresh faced 13 year old from Serbia? Anxiety-inducing is more like. All in all, I really appreciated this documentary.

I half-jokingly considered a bracelet business on Etsy á la Alex and Ani until I realized how bloody difficult bracelet-making is. 

Captions that did not fit

Photo 6: Kels told me about “sungazing” which I had never heard of before. She says things like “Darkness cannot get rid of darkness. Only light can get rid of darkness.” Somewhat goofy but also valid.

Photo 8: Good music and good food at Hu. It’s almost as good as Gustorganics. That place is insanely good. The kale juice is amazing. I cannot emphasize that enough. Their Himalayan green tea is also excellent.

Arty table shot, rahndom church, Princeton, and then lastly, Philadelphia as park of a backpack-lugging trio. Backpacks at swank dens and dive bars alike.

The harp is a really instrumental (ba boom cha) component of this piece.

(Source: Spotify)

Tags: music spotify

Constant Change - Jose Mari Chan 

Jose Mari Chan has long been my dad’s go-to choices for karaoke. His songs are sentimental and verifiably cheesy but I’ve always really appreciated him too.

(Source: youtube.com)

Sometimes after a challenging (but good) week, the best thing to come back to is a not-so-little black lab named Ty. He was a surprise in the backseat of Sara’s car and I definitely appreciated it. Ty is basically the best dog in the whole world. Due to being raised lovingly and well, Ty has grown into a quiet, gentle giant. We took him to pick up our takeout order from Bertucci’s and all the little kids walking in and out loved the hell out of him. His habits are so endearing. For example, Ty is hilariously afraid of this small rabbit shaped stuffed animal but God forbid he run anywhere without a stuffed animal in his mouth. He favors a penguin that he’s had since puppyhood and a Dougie (see: “Up”). 

After the dinner run, we had to swing by the grocery store to fulfill Erin’s ice cream request. She’s home from college this weekend and it’s awesome. Siblings, if you do them right, can be like built-in best friends for life and I admire Sara and Erin’s tightness. In any event, I was slightly horrified when Sara reminded me that pets are not allowed in grocery stores. I basically picked up some Talenti’s gelato for myself, drive-by-shooting-style and rushed back to the car. Ty was totally chill. Staring at the sky through the open moon roof, not eating the takeout in the backseat, not causing a ruckus, not panicking. In short, just being wonderful. 

Nothing exciting but it’s these really subtle moments that I most want to remember. 

Also: Hot damn! Snuggies are amazing. 

I’m not ashamed.

(Source: Spotify)

Tags: music spotify

I loooove scream-shouting. Err. Shout-singing.

(Source: Spotify)

Tags: music spotify