Becoming a Bookworm

Reading for leisure and I have always had a very love/hate relationship.

Like the rockiest of rocky relationships... I taught myself how to read when I was three, so you'd think I would have at least been a bookworm when I was younger. Actually, I was the opposite. I was forever the teacher's nightmare having the highest AR level in the class paired with an overall distaste for reading. I didn't really have a distaste for reading as much as I had a distaste for being forced to read. In fifth grade, I found Harry Potter, which led me to a summer of nonstop reading until I finished the series. Middle school summers were filled with Nicholas Sparks romances and stereotypical teen books that really seem to all have the same story. Recently though, I haven't picked up a book except for the occasional "want to read it before I see the movie". But I really want to change that! 

I'm always too stressed and have "too much to do" for reading. But somehow I find the time to sit for hours staring at my computer screen. I feel like the times that I do read a lot are some of the chillest times of my life, though. And right now is pretty chill. The warp speed part of senior year is over and we can all just calm down for our last two weeks together. Today, I got a craving to go to the bookstore. Usually I steer clear of bookstores, along with office supply stores, because I spend way too much money. Nerd alert! But today I had an uncontrollable book craving. Here's what I picked up!

We All Looked Up by Tommy Wallach

From Amazon-"Four high school seniors put their hopes, hearts, and humanity on the line as an asteroid hurtles toward Earth in this contemporary novel.

They always say that high school is the best time of your life.

Peter, the star basketball player at his school, is worried “they” might actually be right. Meanwhile Eliza can’t wait to escape Seattle—and her reputation—and perfect-on-paper Anita wonders if admission to Princeton is worth the price of abandoning her real dreams. Andy, for his part, doesn’t understand all the fuss about college and career—the future can wait.

Or can it? Because it turns out the future is hurtling through space with the potential to wipe out life on Earth. As these four seniors—along with the rest of the planet—wait to see what damage an asteroid will cause, they must abandon all thoughts of the future and decide how they’re going to spend what remains of the present."

They say don't judge a book by it's cover but I'm so guilty of this. Honestly I was drawn to this book because it looks like a group of friends just like mine. It was on the New Arrivals table and it just looked so familiar. I was iffy about buying it because I thought it looked like a cliche Breakfast Club remake, but I had a weird feeling that I should buy it. I looked online and it seems like this is a lot more than a Breakfast Club remake and I have a feeling I will be seeing it in theaters sometime. I can't wait to start reading this one!

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

From Amazon- "On a warm summer morning in North Carthage, Missouri, it is Nick and Amy Dunne’s fifth wedding anniversary. Presents are being wrapped and reservations are being made when Nick’s clever and beautiful wife disappears. Husband-of-the-Year Nick isn’t doing himself any favors with cringe-worthy daydreams about the slope and shape of his wife’s head, but passages from Amy's diary reveal the alpha-girl perfectionist could have put anyone dangerously on edge. Under mounting pressure from the police and the media—as well as Amy’s fiercely doting parents—the town golden boy parades an endless series of lies, deceits, and inappropriate behavior. Nick is oddly evasive, and he’s definitely bitter—but is he really a killer?"

I'm not a big movie girl, so there are so many movies I say look good and never see. This happens to be one of them. I've seen this book everywhere recently, including in the hands of some of my best friends, so I've been eyeing it for a while! This is what I originally went in for and ended up finding We All Looked Up on the way.

Can't wait to read these and share my thoughts about them with y'all! What are your favorite books currently?

P.S. Found the cutest new brand at Ulta today! I've never heard of Whish before but the little mini shaving cream in the checkout line was too cute to resist. Have any of you tried their products before?

Tips for College Bound Seniors

First semester was so much fun and seemed like it lasted forever, but second semester seems to be going at warp speed. In just five weeks, I will be a high school graduate. It is so crazy to even think about. Final decisions are being made and everything we worked for is finally seeming to be worth something. We've made it to the home stretch! I know a lot of my readers are either seniors or will be seniors soon, so today's post is about little things that have helped me a lot this semester!

1// Connect your college email to your phone

I cannot stress how important and helpful this is. Second semester is full of deadlines, especially now and in the upcoming months. If you've already made a college decision, you should have been given a .edu email address from your college. You would think that this isn't really important until you are actually in classes but at least for me, SO much important information is getting sent to mine. Fortunately, UA uses Gmail to handle their email so connecting my email to my phone is so easy. I already used the app! If you aren't so fortunate, most university emails can be linked to your Mail app on your iPhone. Remembering to check it is hard, so setting up notifications on your phone is the perfect way to stay informed!

2// Join a Class of 2019 Facebook group

I'm sure this is the first thing some people did after making their decision, but this is a great place to introduce yourself to your new classmates! If you're going into college not knowing anyone at your university, this also is where you can scan through potential roommates. Thankfully, technology has evolved to where we can prevent random roomie disasters... I know I definitely dodged a few bullets in my roommate search because of Facebook.

3// Start preparing for rush

This sounds crazy but if you're rushing at a big school, right now is when you should start preparing! A lot of schools recommend that you have a recommendation letter for every sorority, so you should start looking now to prevent any last-minute freakouts. Post a status on your facebook and your parents' listing the sororities you need and kindly asking if anyone would be willing to write you one. Also, Sorority Sugar has a great guide to finding recs and a list of girls that will gladly write you one if you cannot find anyone! Also, it's always a good idea to be looking for good deals on cute dresses for rush week so you won't be breaking the bank all at once!

4// Enjoy your family, friends, and every last that you have

Senior year is full of lasts, and right now we're coming to the lasts of the lasts. It's so bittersweet. It seems like a few weeks ago I was walking into my high school for the first time. Four years, lots of nights participating in the rowdiest student section around, so many dance competitions, countless late nights with the people who matter the most, and a heck of a lot of change later, here we are. Make the most out of every last from here on out. This is the last time you'll be around your class as a whole, unfortunately. It's so easy to get caught up in everything changing so fast. But breathe, relax, and enjoy these last few weeks. Everything has fallen into place, there is no reason to be all worked up anymore. No school is going to rescind their acceptance because you made a B this semester. Calm down and soak it all in.

When it comes to change, this is the calm before the storm.