first impressions

I used to have a blog (well actually, it’s still on the internet somewhere) where I wrote about embarrassing stories that so frequently seemed to happen. For some reason, people liked this blog. I like to think it’s because my stories were so relatable and open and honest, but in reality I think it’s because people liked to laugh at a stranger’s unfortunate events via the internet. Either way, it doesn’t matter, I still got those pageviews, ya feel? ;) 

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    Anyway, I haven’t written on that blog in a while, not because nothing embarrassing has happened lately (because a day doesn’t go by where I don’t embarrass myself), but because I just haven’t had the time to keep up with two blogs. Then, I recently, I asked myself why I had two blogs in the first place. I don’t know why I felt so nervous to share embarrassing stories on PopCosmo. Maybe because this blog has more viewers? Maybe because my dad reads this blog? Who really knows. 

Today marks the first day in history that I will be sharing an embarrassing story on here. This blog. This blog that’s read by more people than solely my cousin and a few select others. Are you ready for this? I mean you made it this far in the post so you might as well read the story..

The other night I went to dinner with two of my friends. We hadn’t seen each other in a while and we felt the need to catch up and tell each other stories (the good and the bad) about what has happened over the summer. Everything was going great until we started talking about technology and our phones, which eventually lead to us talking about our text ringtones. 

Coincidentally, one of my friends had just changed her text tone to a Jurassic World dinosaur roar. I thought it was half cool and half lame, but I wanted to hear what this text tone actually sounded like. So, of course, I texted her. Since she was sitting right next to me I just texted some scrambled letters, “gnirebj.” But for some reason, the text wasn’t going through. So I sent another, “gurejnlsk;a.” That once didn't go through either so I continued to text three more messages of jumbled letters to my friend in hopes of hearing a dinosaur roar. I then joked around and said something along the lines of, “I hope I didn’t send those texts to the wrong person…” 

Turns out I did. I sent five gross — as in “not english” — text messages to the wrong person. And who is this “wrong person” you might ask? None other than my roommate to be for next year, my first year of college. My roommate who I have yet to meet or have an actual conversation with. Way to start impressions out on a good note. Props to me. Awesome work. Always proving myself. I then continued to text my roommate, “omg I’m so sorry!!!” Which rendered no response. 

In the end, I learned two important lessons; one, always make sure you’re texting the right person. Especially when you’re sending gibberish text messages. And two, Jurassic World ringtones aren’t really worth hearing in the end.

feminism

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I mentioned this a few posts back, but I’ve been having a lot of boy complications lately. It’s mostly because I realized that they’re being jerks and I’ve been standing up for myself and it’s been leading to arguments and misunderstandings. I think boys are just so shocked whenever a girl actually stands up for themselves that they don’t know how to respond and they ultimately end up saying things that they hopefully don’t mean. 

Even though boys are stupid, I’m so thankful to be surrounded by awesome girl friends who have been so supportive and helpful. We’ve been joking around saying that, by standing up for myself, I’m becoming the ultimate feminist. And that got me thinking, what even is a feminist? I feel like,especially lately, there has been kind of a stigma around the word. 

So here’s an outline between what I believe an actual feminist is vs. the stigma surrounded feminist 

ACTUAL
-stands up for herself
-believes men and women are equal in every way
-let’s gentlemen be gentlemen if she wants to (open doors, pay for meals, etc.)
-doesn’t have anything against the color pink 
-wears a bra because she wants to not because she has to
-you, me, and every other girl out there (because what girl doesn’t think that women are equal to men??)

STIGMA
-hairy arm pits 
-smells like patchouli oil
-only homosexual 
-doesn’t believe in wearing bras 

Just because some people don’t really know the definition of “feminist” doesn’t mean that you should shy away from your beliefs or apologize for thinking men and women are equal. Both genders have a right to say what they think, be paid fairly for their job (not according to their gender), and have equal rights. The stigma surrounding feminism is dumb, untrue, and totally worth making fun of because it’s highly entertaining. 

Are you a feminist?
Do you stick up for yourself when a boy is being a cotton headed ninny muggins?

Thanks for reading! 
xox
chloe

an open letter to the male species

Let’s talk about boys for a second. I love them, and hate them, they’re annoying, they're flirtatious, they’re good, and they’re bad. Lately, I’ve been having some boy issues. Well, I guess issues isn’t necessarily the right word, but "inconvenience" is more like it. I decided that I should write an open letter to the male species. I figure if just one guy reads this and learns something from this letter, then maybe, just maybe, we can have less of the bad guys (bad being the opposite of a gentleman; a f*ck boy if you will) and more of the good guys, the gentlemen. 

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So here it goes. 

Dear the male species,

Girls, however seemingly “complicated” are actually super simple. In fact, in order to woo a lady, one must follow the simple steps outlined below. They aren’t difficult, they’re fairly cheap (and often free), and are almost 100% guaranteed to sweep a girl off her feet, and into your loving arms. So please read the list carefully, bookmark it in your preferred browser, print it and hang it on the mirror you probably so often stare longingly into, or just, simply, read and understand what I’m saying. Please, I beg of you. 

1. If you like a girl, tell her or at least let her know. Don’t ever just expect a girl to make the first move. If you really want her in your life, you’ll put in the effort to make her part of it. You can text to make the first move or whatever, but this doesn’t mean that you don’t have to talk to her in real life. A text is just an introduction, a real conversation is where you really make the magic happen, so to speak. Nothing compares to a real life “hello” or, you know, an actual conversation. 
2. When you pick her up to go on a date, walk to her door, ring the bell or knock on the door, and talk to her parents (shake their hands, make small talk about the weather/sports/whatever, ask what time she needs to be home, etc.), and then laugh about how awkward it was afterwards while driving to your date destination. Parents aren’t scary, they just want to get to know the person that is taking their daughter out on a date. Don’t be nervous, just be yourself. 
3. Plan the date yourself. Don’t ask a girl to come up with the idea. She’ll most likely be happy with anything you plan, girls like it when the guy is in charge. She might be a feminist, but that doesn’t mean that you still can’t plan a date. The movies are great, dinner is great too, but it’s nice to come up with something creative sometimes too. Make her think you put some thought and originality into your plans. Go play glow in the dark putt putt, attend a local farmer’s market, go rock climbing or hiking, or just have a picnic in the park. Creativity = extra points, trust me on that one.  
4. Always tell her how your feel. If you think about her right when you wake up, shoot her a good morning text. If you think she’s prettier than the entire milky way, please, please, tell her that. On the flip side, if you feel like your relationship isn’t really working out, let her know, preferably not over text. More times that not, I’ve seen guys just stop talking to their girl instead of telling them how they feel. Don’t ever let a girl wonder where you stand with her. It might be hard for you to tell her, but it’s easier than having her mad at you or leaving her upset and sad. 
5. Be yourself, be honest, and be kind. These don’t really need elaborating… at least I don’t think they do. Just treat your girl with the respect that she so deserves. 

So there you have it. Five, relatively easy, ways to become (or remain) a gentleman. Please try them out and see what happens. 

If you’re a girl who’s reading this, feel free to share it with, you know, every single boy you’ve ever met. Or just one, I’ll settle for it just getting into the hands of one guy. 

Let me know if you have any more things to add to the list, there are probably infinite ways to woo a girl… am I right ladies??

Thanks for reading! 
xox
Chloe

addicted to change

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I’m addicted to change. I’m addicted to the idea of “new.” I’m addicted to seeing new things, trying new things, doing new things, and meeting new people. I like the idea of different. Different makes me uncomfortable, because it’s, well, different, but it also makes me excited. I like learning new things, and understanding new things. I think it’s mostly because when life is too consistent, life gets boring. Consistency equals boredom and being bored is something I strive to stay away from. 

I could blame this craving for the new on the fact that I’ve lived in six different cities and seven different houses. Or the fact that I attended three different high schools, in five years, in two cities. But I don’t want to “blame” anything on my love of the idea of newness. As a matter of fact, I don’t think “blame” is the right word, I think “thank” is a better word. I feel lucky to have had these experiences that have allowed me to embrace change. In fact, I embrace change so much that I crave it. I constantly crave something new. I am, in fact, addicted to it. 

Do you prefer consistency or newness? I’d love to know! 
xox
chloe

behind the 'gram

Instagram is weird if you think about it. It’s kind of like a life highlight reel, mixed with a diary, mixed with a whole lot of filters and hashtags and captions. It’s weird to think that so much thought can go into one, seemingly, simple picture. It’s also sad how much time I spend on the planning of an Instagram post. I try to think about the color scheme, the framing, the subject matter, the filter, the lighting, the caption, the hashtags, and then if I should or shouldn’t push the photo to Twitter. So much goes into one picture. 

I was recently tagged by Jamie from The Fashion Newcomer to post never posted Instagrams, but I usually delete the pictures that don’t make the cut so that I can make room for new pictures. So I decided that I’d post a behind the ‘gram post. Now, I’ve done this kind of post before, but you all seem to enjoy them for the most part so here goes yet another one. I hope you enjoy.

Dang Clementine 
I had an independent study class second semester this past school year and I basically got to come up with my own projects for the class. One of my projects was to continue working on my calligraphy so I brought all my supplies to school. As I was writing I was also simultaneously eating a clementine that happened to be disgusting. Then, I was stuck with inspiration for what ti write. I initially just posted this picture to my snapchat (it’s chloeg1 if you want to see me embarrass myself) but I decided it was good enough to make the Instagram cut. 

Scotland Skyline
I went on a school trip to Scotland for spring break and it was absolutely amazing. One of the days we visited Edinburgh and my friends and I climbed to the top of the Gothic Rocket. We had to go up hundreds of steps via a seemingly never-ending circle staircase and by the time I got to the top all I wanted to do was sit down. But the view was so beautiful. As I took this picture I was so extremely worried that my phone was going to fly out of my hands because it was so windy, but I managed to capture this photo, keep my phone in my hands, and enjoy the scenery. Props to me for restraining my clumsy self. 

Poolside Lemonade 
My friends and I adventured to the pool a few days ago, and we decided to bring our own lunch (aka buy lunch from Whole Foods). One of my friends and I decided that we were in the mood for a trendy drink and Hubert’s Lemonade caught our eye. Right when we got to the pool, I made my friend take a picture of our Lemonades. I took at least seven pictures at different angles and different ways of holding the bottle before I settled with this one. It then took me forever to figure out which filter to use. 

Instagram is an art form, I’m telling you. I’d love to read your behind the ‘gram post, so feel free to post one of your own and leave a link to it in the comments!
Thanks for reading! 
xox
Chloe 

senior year reflection

Caroline from Citrus and Style just wrote a great blog post on her junior year reflection. In fact, it was such a great post that I decided that I should write a reflection of my senior year. Senior year was honestly my most favorite year of high school. I don’t know if it’s because I was finally back in “real school” after two long agonizing years of online school, but whatever the reason, it truly was the most amazing year yet. While it was amazing and great and fun, I did learn a few things in the process. 

So here’s what I learned…

+Be friends with everyone. Each person at your school, however seemingly weird, has something so cool about themselves and something you can most definitely learn from them. Whether it’s the band geek, the math prodigy, or the super poplar and supposedly stuck up girl, they are all cool in their own individual ways. Don’t get caught up in trying to surround yourself with a certain “type” of friend group, because in the end, everyone is actually really cool.
+Grades matter, but don’t stress ‘till your breaking point over them. Don’t waste your time away studying for something ridiculous. Obviously,  try your best and do your best, but don’t put so much pressure on yourself. If you don’t get an A+ on a math test, don’t beat yourself up. Just go to some extra tutoring sessions or try harder next time. I spent the first three years of high school absolutely paranoid over my grades, and this year I didn’t, but everything still worked out perfectly. 
+Don’t get caught up in having to have a boyfriend or a significant other. If it happens, it happens, but don’t harp on it. Boys are dumb. Well, most boys. Go on a few dates, kiss a few boys, just have fun with it. 
+Stop caring what other people think. This is clearly easier said than done, but if you enjoy reading alone at coffee shops, playing a weird sport, or posting dumb videos of yourself on your Snap Story, just do it. Who cares what everyone thinks? You do you, flawlessly. 
+Spend time with your family. Of course they annoy you, but next year, in college, you won’t be able to just chill on the couch and watch a dumb movie with your dad, go shopping with your mom, or go on fun random adventures with your brother. Don’t take family time for granted! 

So there you have it. A list of five things to remember for your senior year, or just life in general I guess.
What’s something you learned from your senior year of high school? Any advice for me for college next year?

Thanks for reading! 
xox
Chloe