On Lush

So, it's been a while.
But we're not gonna talk about that right now. Right now, we're gonna talk about Lush.
I am 100% a Lush-a-holic. I want to buy all the things. The ladies at my local store know who I am. I know who they are. I'm pretty sure it's true love.
Reasons why I love Lush:

1. Their products do what they say they'll do. 
2. They recycle their pots (and will give you a free face mask if you bring in 5 empties) and are big on keeping everything cruelty free, and on using fresh and healthy ingredients. 
3. The people that work there are encouraged to try all of the stuff out, so they can help you find what will work best for your skin/hair.
4. Their bath bombs. 

Now, sadly, Lush is ... a tad more expensive in the States than in New Zealand (which is definitely a first) and the closest one to me is about a 30 minute drive, so I'm going to have to wean myself off of their products and stick to a few favorites.
These are those favorites.

 For Moisturizer: Celestial

I was always scared of moisturizer, because I assumed it was only for people with dry skin. WRONG! This moisturizer has calmed my skin down so much and has lasted me a year so far. It's light, sinks in quickly and smells great.

For Lips: Mint Julips Lip Scrub 

 While I was in New Zealand, I realized the reason I never liked the look of lipstick was because my lips weren't smooth. And no amount of super moisture rich chap stick could make them look nice. THEN! I discovered Mint Julips and glory be, using this once every other week keeps my lips smooth and pretty. Plus, it tastes and smells AMAZING. 

For Teeth: Atomic Toothy Tabs

 This took me a bit to get used to, but I am IN LOVE with this. It's Chai flavored toothpaste that doesn't come in a horribly non-recyclable/non-decomposing/forever in the dump toothpaste tube and it cleans my teeth. Plus, I don't have to be careful about what food or drinks I have for breakfast after brushing my teeth. No nasty flavor combos, just clean chai scented teeth.

For Face Masks: Brazened Honey

Cheating a bit with this one because I only recently bought it, but OH. MY. GOD. This is the smoothest and nicest my skin has felt since ... ever. It smells AMAZING and doesn't leave any residue and I just adore it. I will definitely buy this for as long as it's in stores.

For Face Wash: Ocean Salt

I generally only use this in the shower because it's a bit messy, but it is the best face wash I've ever used. This is probably my 5th pot of Ocean Salt and I will probably continue to use it until I die. The salt in it feels great - I love how clean my face feels after using it. Plus, this shit smells like a margarita.  

On Food in Wellington

(this post comes to because my lovely/beautiful/smart friend Kelsey was nice and suggested it. I'm kind of sort of in a writing rut and needed some blerg post ideas)

For a lot of my time in Wellington, I've been on the mostly not fun side of poor, and haven't been able to really go out and eat in Wellington. The food here is great and varied and ...also kind of expensive. Don't get me wrong, if you look hard enough you can find cheap places, but the food is never as good. But now that I have a worthy of a capitol J Job, I can actually afford to go out and try that one place that I've walked by every day for the last 6 months but have been too low on money to comfortably swing paying 15$ for lunch. Man, is it great. I can treat myself without looking back in regret at those 15$ I no longer have. Why is this post all about money? Stop it, Kate. Talk about food.

Food culture in New Zealand took a bit to get used to. Because 80% of what we eat is imported (be it culturally or actually imported) a lot of it is expensive. I think that's sort of what drives the importance of food in New Zealand.
IT TOOK A LOT TO GET THIS FOOD TO THESE TINY ISLANDS SO YOU WILL CHERISH IT AND APPRECIATE IT AND THAT WILL BE 8$ FOR THAT AVOCADO, PLEASE. (I'm not joking, buying fruit and veg at supermarkets is just STUPID in this country. Luckily there are farmers' markets on the weekends so you just have to stock up then)

Here are some of my favorite foods from the last few months:

Steak and Chips at The Fisherman's Table

 Ham, Avocado and Brie sandwich and a lemon bitters cake from Arobake

 Butter Chicken and Naan from Mughlai Indian Takeaways

 Mini-Carrot Cake and Mini-Red Velvet Cake from Arobake

Palmiers and Brioche from Le Moulin Bakery

 Peanut Piston Burger and Kumara (sweet potato) Chips from Burger Fuel

Scorch-O-Rama-Lama-Ding-Dong at Scorch-O-Rama

Man, am I gonna miss New Zealand food. 

On Being Raised With Musicals

I like to think that, amongst a few other things like love and understanding, I was brought up on Ego Waffles and Musicals. And incredibly lucky to have done so. Few people get to grow up with an awesome family like mine. And I'm not just saying that because I know my parents read my blog (hi guys), but the more I see of how my friends grew up the more I know how great I had it. Few people get to grow up in the States and with 2 parents who both had jobs and were open minded and encouraging and big into Family and the arts. Seriously, who could ask for more?

Growing up surrounded my musicals has shaped a lot of my adult life. I've learnt so many life lessons from musicals.

•  Anything can be turned into a song. (all musicals)
• Kissing strangers in the wood is a bad idea. (Into the Woods)
• Any time anyone accidentally says a line from a musical I start singing (much to Kaitlyn's frustration).
• it's better to be loved by a few than liked by many ([Title of Show])
• Just because people sing along with you at meetings doesn't mean they'll be there for you when shit is going down (Les Mis)
• If I can accept that some people are green and some people are little puppets, I can accept any other idiosyncrazies you throw at me. (Wicked and Avenue Q)
• Don't only be friends with couples because life isn't company. (Company)
• Don't let the haters get bring you down (Wicked and [Title of Show])
• Even thought it's easy to get caught up in the act, you don't have to share in everyone else's delusions (A Chorus Line)
• Understanding how important the arts are and accepting that everyone's a little bit different. (again, all musicals)

In college, I got very confused when hardly anyone understood the Musical Theater jokes I was making or why I was constantly breaking into song. Didn't everyone else grow up knowing all the words to songs written by men in the 70s and 80s? No? Cool.  The relationship I have with my family is not a typical one - not only do I love my family, I like them. They're pretty groovy people, and I'm lucky enough to have realized that and try to appreciate them as much as I can.

SAP WARNING AHEAD: A big part of my Growing Up has been the realization that not everyone's parents taught their kids acceptance like mine did. It might've been going to college in Oklahoma, but I was incredibly surprised by the amount of casual racism that seemed to be engrained into the kids in my classes. I grew up knowing that no matter what I did, I would always have 3 people that would love me and care about me. And that it was ok to be different and not to judge anyone else because they were. No amount of poor decision making or weird neurosis would change that. A lot of people I know don't have that and it makes me so incredibly sad that there aren't more parents out there like mine. That's not to say my parents are perfect: my dad makes some terrrrrrrible dad jokes and my mom really likes Lyle Lovett's music. Gross.
I know a lot of people that are afaid to turn into their parents, but I'm really glad that I'm so much like mine.

On Reading (#3)

Round 3 of book reviews:

The Truth by Terry Pratchett
Would Recommend If: you like books, stories about the news, or Terry Pratchett.
I'll admit it: I am addicted to reading discworld books. They're clever and hilarious and I love how the world has developed over the series and ... GAH IT'S JUST SO GREAT. The Truth is no exception - you get a glimpse of a side of Ankh-Morpork that we don't often see (pre-industrial revolution, at least), and a glimpse into what the rest of the city is like outside the University and the City Watch (which will always and forever be my favorite books, with Tiffany Aching and the Moist Von Lipwig coming in distant 2nd and 3rd). Realizing now that this won't make much sense if you haven't read any discworld books. You should read some.

Wyrd Sisters by Terry Pratchett
Would Recommend If: same as above, except replace news with witches and theater.
I really wasn't kidding, I'm trying to read all of the discworld books. After completely skipping the Witches books first time around, I'm diving in with Wyrd Sisters. Which is basically any Shakespeare play told from the perspective of the witches. Loved this, and loved learning more about Lancre.

How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe by Charles Yu
Would Recommend If: you like time travel but don't like science fiction.
To be completely honest, I was disappointed by this book. It had so much promise - but did not deliver. I wish there had been much more time travel things and much less existential crisis things. The main character is a Time Travel Technician. HOW COOL IS THAT? But we barely see him do his job before he loses his mind and we're forced to go with him. I barely made it all the way though this book.

Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia
Would Recommend If: you liked the Mortal Instruments series? I don't know. Maybe if you kinda liked Twilight but didn't really?
I don't know why I keep on subjecting myself to poorly executed YA paranormal romance series, but I do. The idea for this book was AWESOME: magic that turns you good or evil on your 16th birthday and all of it set in the deep south. And this book stays nicely away from a lot of YA romance tropes: has a male narrator, no love triangle, everything isn't magically 100% OK at the end of the book. But ... I don't know what it was that made me so frustrated with this book. It might've been the pacing or the fact that it is verrrry obvious that whoever wrote the book has never lived in the south and doesn't know a whole lot about how people talk/act. I bought the 2nd in the series, so I'll probably try reading it, but I really don't have much hope for it.

The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton
Would Recommend If: I have no idea, really. This book is not something I'd normally read, so I don't have a whole lot to compare it with.
This book was really interesting and a bit out of my comfort zone. I don't normally read World War II mysteries, but my mom enjoyed it and suggested I read it, so I did. I liked the structure of the book and I liked where she took it - not where I thought it was going to go, but a more realistic idea of what happened to people who lived in London during the Blitz. War torn London has always been fascinating to me and this book has re-piqued my interest. I'll definitely be reading more of this sort of book, and I'd probably pick up another book by Morton.

On Rain

Ah, Wellington. Windy Welly, Wet Welly, Winter Welly.
If the last few weeks can tell me anything is that any and all nicknames that Wellington has are well-earned. We hardly saw the sun last week (17-23rd June) and had one of the worst storms the country has seen in 40 years. I don't know if the country's just showing off for Kaitlyn and I (since we've been here we've had: the hottest and driest summer in 60 years, the worst storm in 40 years, etc) but I don't really apprecaite it, to be honest. I don't want to get blown away when I'm walking home from work. And it's not so much that I mind the rain, but rain for 3 weeks straight is ... not fun. And it isn't even real rain. It's more like someone constantly blowing raspberries right into your face.
 But there's not a lot I can do other that bundle up and try to make the best out of the crappy weather: make lots of warm, hearty food and take lots of pictures of the trees outside our kitchen window.

On Learning To Cook

When I started this blog in April, I didn't think it would end up being 90% about me dragging myself into the adult world; but that's just what my life, upon examination, has turned out to be.
As a part of my Great Kiwi Adventure Into Adulthood, I am teaching myself how to cook. Well, Kaitlyn is forcing me to learn how to cook because getting fast food or take away every night is "bad for you" and "a waste of money" or that consuming my body weight in sodium is "not a good idea" PAH! GROWN UP NONSENSE, I SAY. MCDONALD'S FOR DINNER EVERY DAY, IT'S THE AMERICAN WAY.
Up until this year, I knew how to confidently make 3 things:

1. pasta
2. sandwiches
3. scrambled eggs

I balked at the idea of cooking anything with meat - mostly out of fear of under cooking said meet and dying a horrible undercooked meat death, and a little bit out of fear of burning my apartment down because I don't know how to cook with oil (that happened, luckily one of my roommates was home and knew what to do with a pan that was on fire).
Fun side note: that very same apartment burnt down less than a year after I moved out

And it's easy to get into the habit of going out to get most of your meals, skipping the grocery store and heading straight for that tasty Indian place that's just down the street from our flat... But no! Going to the grocery store and farmers market on the weekends has turned into a staple for us, and has really helped me realize how impractical my eating habits were.
That's not to say that Kaitlyn and I never eat out, we rarely do (because food in wellington is pricey and we generally have stuff to make at home) - but it's a treat, rather than a common occurrence.

Actually paying attention to what I'm consuming has made me 100% sure that I am lactose intolerant - a fact I have blatantly ignored for the last few years because, really, ice cream is so dang tasty. And curbing my dairy and sodium intake (along with having to walk everywhere) has helped me get to a healthier weight than I was at when I left the states in August.

I wouldn't say I'm at the point where I look forward to cooking - it still makes me anxious, sometimes. But I like knowing that I can look after myself and I know some recipes and how to poach chicken and defrost meat and make casseroles and thicken dairy based sauces and (some would say most importantly) not to leave oil on a hot pan unattended.
Learning, y'all!

On Reading (#2)

I'm going to start posting Book Reviews on the first monday of every month. There probably won't always be 5 books a month (I'm catching up on what I've read so far this year) but there'll at least be one a month.  YAY READING.

Shadow of Night by Deborah Harkness
Would Recommend If: you read the first in the series, Geraldine Brooks' books, 'magic is real but shhh' type books
I'm a bit conflicted about this book, to be honest. I really enjoyed the first one, A Discovery of Witches, but this one ... just not quite as much. I still quite enjoyed it, and I liked the direction she took the series in, but it didn't move as well or feel anywhere near as exciting as the first one. It's nice that the main character only got kidnapped once (I think it was only once. It might've been twice) this time around, but it made for a slower read. I'll definitely read the next in the series ... whenever it comes out.

Madness Underneath by Maureen Johnson
Would Recommend If: you like Maureen Johnson in any capacity, supernatural/mysterious/sad YA books
I'm a big Maureen Johnson fan, so it comes as no surprise that I loved this book. It's a great sequel so The Name Of The Star and it's creepy and sad and just great. And, Johnson doesn't spend a lot of time catching you up on what happened in the last book (a bit of a pet peeve of mine) and jumps right into the action. The end is a bit frustrating, but it's still a fast and fun read that makes you want another book in the series.

Dodger by Terry Pratchett
Would Recommend If: you've read any of Pratchett's other works, Oliver Twist with a twist HAHA I AM HILARIOUS
I am on a (not so secret, if you've looked at my goodreads) quest to read all of Terry Pratchett's books. And there are a lot of them. Somewhere north of 40 books, I think. And this one is no exception to the quality I've come to expect from Pratchett. The characters are great, as is the story and the world it's set in - you can really tell that Pratchett has a love for the era and for his characters. A great/fast/funny read. But, then again, all of the Pratchett I've read has been.

Vesuvius Club by Mark Gatiss
Would Recommend If: you're a fan of Gatiss' other work (BBC Sherlock, many episodes of Doctor Who), sassy assassin/spy men in victorian england type books
I have mixed feelings about this one. I think because I didn't get sucked into the story or characters immediately, it took me a bit longer to read. And, because of that, Gatiss' writing style took me a bit to get into every time I picked the book up. Other than my problems with the prose, I quite enjoyed the book. It was very clever and relatively kept my interest over the month it took me to read it.

Infernal Devices Series (Clockwork Prince, Clockwork Angel, Clockwork Princess) by Cassandra Clare
Would Recommend If: you've read the Mortal Instruments series (same universe), sad/supernatural/romance/mystery/victorian london YA books
Oh, The Infernal Devices. I have a love/hate relationship with this series. I loved the idea of it, but not so much the execution. I think I might be a bit old for this series (aimed at "teens", which oftentimes in YA books means 13 year olds can read it) and that is where most of my problems with it came from - the one trope that YA can't seem to leave be is the Love Triangle and this series was no exception. Dragged the love triangle out for 3 books. Drove me a bit mad. The characters had a lot of other stuff to deal with and liking more than one boy for the majority of the series seems like taking the easy way out (and getting them both in the end - blegh. My eyes nearly rolled out of my head while I was reading the Clockwork Princess). I did enjoy the series, other than the lovey triangley bits though.

On My Make Up Bag

In the last year or so, I've gotten Serious about make up. I like how I look with make up on, so I wear it almost every day. Because of that, I've started carrying a more serious 'make up bag' in my purse with me wherever I go with the make up that I use most often (except blush because I don't have a blush brush that can fit).

The Essentials: some safety pins (for safety), some bobby pins, a pair of earrings, and a hair tie (because WIND IN WELLINGTON IS CRAY)

Skin:  a sample size pot of NARS' Sheer Glow foundation, Rimmel's Stay Matte powder (stays on really well) and my Lush atomizer Lust (smells kind of like flowers, but also like a lush store)

Eyes: Lollipops Paris Eyeshadow in Lilly's Delight, Australis Stay Put eyeliner ... in brown, and a Miki Palette in Smokey Neutrals (all 3 of these were quite cheap by New Zealand make up standards, so they're not the best, but they get the job done)

Lips: Australis' Samba (the top one), Mac's Angel (the middle one)(Mac is so great but it is seriously cheaper to buy and ship from the states than it is to buy it IN NEW ZEALAND), Estee Lauder's Cranberry (the bottom one)

A lot of the make up in this bag is stuff I can wear to work, so I end up putting it on in the morning and then being able to refresh at lunch. Hah, never really thought I'd be the type of person that 'refreshes' their make up at lunch but I guess I am. I don't know when it happened, but I don't really mind.

On Naming Books

In my pre-blog days, I spent a lot of time coming up with names for my memoirs. Not that I ever intend to actually write one - I'm not even sure I'm a good enough writer for this blog let alone an entire book - but I've always enjoyed coming up with names for them.

Here's a few of the "best" of them:

I'm Tired and I Want to go Back to Bed: A Memoir
synopsis: dealing with trying to be an adult when you still don't feel like one

I Want to be You When I Grow Up
synopsis: pretending i'm not an adult yet, also hero/celebrity/parent worship and how it's not great to put people on pedestals.

Your Children are Horrible
synopsis: stories of children being funny/weird/horrible and a behind the scenes look at working in childcare

Imaginative or Stupid: Childhood Misconceptions
synopsis: misconceptions I had about the world as a child

Narrative Imperative (could also be a band name)
synopsis: I don't know what this one would be about but it's cool to say. narrative imperative.

Laughing and Crying: or Why I Hate Talking to Adults
synopsis: this one would just be full of one-liners to answer the ridiculous questions adults are constantly asking you:
So, are you dating anyone?
And what exactly are you going to do with your degree?
Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
And
Why are you crying?

for a travel series:
How Many Shoes is Too Many? 
A Misadventures in Packing Book

Packing on Codeine was a Bad Idea
A Misadventures in Packing Book
synopsis: travel/life tips for young people. because I'm really the person to be giving advice on those things.

On Selfies

a quick explanation as to what 'selfies' are: any picture taken of yourself that is planned to be uploaded to any sort of social networking website.
Ok, now that that's out of the way, here's a rant about selfies.
Well, not about the selfies themselves, but about the stigma that seems to surround them. I realize that most people in my generation have a inordinate obsession with sharing everything they're doing with the rest of the world and that's mostly silly because no one really cares that much about what you're doing excluding your parents, probably. That need to share often leads to the taking of multitudes of selfies.

I have entire folder for them on my computer. I have no shame.

And what baffles me is that I've seen people getting angry about other people posting pictures of themselves online. Which is just ridiculous. If you feel good enough about yourself to post a picture of your damn beautiful face for the whole internet to see, THEN YOU GO. YOU POST THAT PICTURE. It took me a long time to be ok with how I look and I refuse to make anyone else feel bad about what they're doing with their bodies. My new-ish mantra is "be nice to everyone, because you never know how crappy their day has been." Don't rain on their parade just because you can. No one likes rainy parades. Especially Barbra Streisand.

And I know a lot of people will roll their eyes at me because my generation doesn't need to be any more self involved than it already is, but do we want to raise another generation of super self conscious and self deprecating people? What generation before this has had the ability to share so much and see so much before leaving high school? We're just trying to deal, y'all. We're not the best at it, but give us a few years and we'll figure it out, I promise. we'll be running things some day soon, so you might as well accept it.

The simplest way to avoid the frustration with my generation and our love of everything Us? Oh man, it's gonna make you so mad you didn't think of it first, you ready?
Just don't look at the picture. Skim right over it. Put your phone/computer/fax machine away and go think about something else. Don't make the person who is putting themselves out there feel bad about themselves because you hate the internet/young people.

quick, angry person, look away! here comes a selfie to finish off the post.
Super proud of this one.

*note* I wrote this post a few weeks ago, but it has aptly come out at the same time as one of the most ridiculous and idiotic articles written about the Millennials that's ever been. Look at it if you'd like, but I wouldn't suggest going further than the cover of the magazine itself:

On Reading (#1)

Because I challenged myself to read 40 books this year, I've decided to do some short Book Reviews of the books I've read so far this year.

Across The Universe by Beth Revis

Would Recommend If You Like: Divergent series, Matched Series, teenagers in spaaaace!

I've read a lot of YA distopian fiction in the last few years and am getting a little tired of the genre. That being said, this is a quick and easy read and the plot is interesting enough to keep you reading. The biggest problems I had with the book were the made up future slang Revis used - it kept on taking me out of the book and wondering what it meant/why she chose to use sooo much. Overall, I quite enjoyed the book and but I'm still on the fence as to whether or not I'll read the other 2 books in the series. 

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness

Would Recommend If You Like: Geraldine Brooks' books, magical creatures exist in secret type books 

I normally try to stay away from fantasy books set in modern day, but this series will be an exception. I love the voice and the characters and the world that the book is set in. I was fully expecting the book to turn into a bodice-ripping type romance novel, but was pleasantly surprised when it stayed away from the sexy sexy aspects of the genre, and kept with the danger magic danger aspects of the genre.

Magician King by Lev Grossman

Would Recommend If You Like: I wouldn't recommend it, to be honest.

After the semi-disappointment of the first book, I was wary to even start this book - and with good reason. Magician King has just as much whiney, mopey, why-can't-I-have-everything-I-wa-a-a-ant as the first book, but without an exciting climax at the end. I was so excited for this series, and I love the world it's set in, but it's hard to enjoy a book with such an annoying narrator. 

Sleepwalk With Me by Mike Birbiglia

Would Recommend If You Like: Chelsea Handler's books, This American Life

I started this book a little biased - I love Birbiglia's stand-up and all of the segments of This American Life he's participated in. If you know his stand-up, some of the stories might be familiar, but you can clearly hear his voice in his writing. It's really funny, even at times touching, and I hope he writes more books.

Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion 

Would Recommend If You Like: World War Z, YA distopia novels, zombies

I hate to sound like everyone else I know that's read this book, but it's an excellent new take on zombie books. I thought it would be weird to side with the zombies in a book, but the main character is so charming and it's so well written it felt natural to root for the zombies. To be honest, I mostly only read this to take a break from the crappy YA series I was forcing myself to finish - but I'm glad I did. It's an interesting take on a tired genre and it's well worth a read. 

On Aro Valley

I absolutely adore this area of Wellington, it's one of the oldest parts of Wellington City (I think Brooklyn is the oldest suburb? Wikipedia told me it is) and I love the feel of this suburb. There's not a supermarket, but there is a park, a cinema AND a zipline place. What more could I need? a supermarket. i'd like a supermarket.

On Living So Far From Home

This year in New Zealand will have been the longest (and furthest) I've ever been away from home, and the fact that I am closer to the end of the year, than anything else, is really weird. For the next 3 months, I know I'm going to be swinging back and forth between "oh my god i love this country it's so beautiful i don't want to leave" and "oh my god i miss home so much i am excited to go back". Times be tough, yo.

I have absolutely no regrets in choosing to move here when I did, I have gotten to experience so much and see so many incredible things this year. And as much as I absolutely love and adore everything about living in New Zealand, I don't think I could ever actually settle here. It's too far away from 90% of the people I know and I'm pretty sure the part of me that yells any time I'm minorly inconvenienced by store hours (bank/library hours continue to baffle me) or the lack of Target-type stores won't be going anywhere any time soon. The closer I get to going back to the states, the more excited I get at the prospect of going to Target. I just really miss it, y'all. I also miss my family and friends but I figure that basically goes without saying

Another part of why I don't think I could settle here is that I feel like I would never have to actually grow up if I stayed - New Zealand is my own never never land. And I definitely know I have some Growing Up to do; and, for the first time since starting college, I am not terrified of the idea. I want to move back to the states and get started on my life.

While living here hasn't been 100% work or 100% holiday, it has felt like a stopgap between the end of one era (childhood) and the beginning of another (adulthood) and being away has allowed me to actually pause and think about what I want to do and where I want to do it while letting me get used to life after college. I know that I am very lucky to have even gotten the opportunity to do this, but I suggest everyone should do it before making any decision ever. Spend most of a year thinking vaguely about it, then make an informed decision and do that thing. It'll take a bit longer to get things done, but you'll be happy with whatever you end up with. 

On Rainy Days

Summer is definitely over in Wellington, friends. With temperatures hovering at about 55 F with lots of wind and rain, it's been hard to convince myself to leave the flat, let alone look semi-fashionable. On rainy days (most often when I don't have to work) I've been trying to come up with ways to spruce up outfits/convince myself that going out in sweatpants is unacceptable. This is what I have so far:

How I Spruce:

1. Add a bright color. I'm not sure if jewel tones are still "in", but i don't care i LOVE this cardigan.
2. Braids! Braids make everything fancier. They're also an excellent way to keep your hair out of your face/hide that you need to wash your hair. Not that I ever do that.
   
3. Ankle boots! I looooooooove ankle boots. They go with everything and I can even wear these bad boys to work.
4. Red Lipstick. Were I able to get away with wearing red lipstick to work, I would probably be rockin it every day. 

On Romance

Recently, I've had several people ask me about my love life. While I'm tremendously pleased that they seem to think that I'm together enough to have a semi-functioning adult type relationship with another human, it's a bit disheartening that there is no news on that front, and hasn't really been any news since coming to New Zealand.
Sure, I've been hit on at a few bars, but aside from that there really hasn't been much happening in that ...department.
I'm sure it's because most of the men I spend time with are under the age of 5, and while I enjoy hanging out with kids as much as the next person (actually, probably more than most people. It is my job after all) I just can't really see myself dating any of them... predominately because I am not attracted to children and also it is illegal and I'd probably get super fired.
Ok this went in a weird direction, let's backtrack a bit.
I've never been great at putting myself out there. In the past, when I've dated it's generally been a situation of "Oh Hello Friend We Are In School Together Let Us Smash Our Faces Together Thank You Please", but since I've left school - and don't really like going to bars/clubs/outside - I've found it is really difficult to meet people.
It's hard not to feel like I'm bad at being 23, but that scene just ain't for me. And with the added pressure of a lot of my friends getting married/engaged/babied, it's hard to not think that there's something wrong with what I'm doing, and not that it is 100% perfectly fine for me to not having any of those things.
Everyone has their own timeline and I am having to accept that mine is just a little behind in the romance department.

About Bits:

Some basics:

• my name is Kate
• I am 23 and 3/4
• I'm an American living in New Zealand until the end of July
• I work with children
• I like taking pictures, fashion blogs, reading, and the internet.

You'll see here:

• bits of life (predominately photos)
• bits of stories (predominately words)
• bits of fashion (a mix of both words and photos)

I'm going to try to post twice a week, so check back soon!