New Beginnings and Crossroads

Well hello, hello! 

For anyone out there still reading my blog you may be asking where did you go? What happened? Why the long hiatus? 

Well, quite frankly, I don't have a very good reason...life just happened... During my junior and senior year of college the academic load just got heavier, and I became more involved in extracurricular activities. I had to prioritize some things, and as much as I enjoy blogging, I had to put it on hold. 

So what's new? 

1. I am a new grad with a B.S. in biological sciences 

2. I moved from SoCal back to my hometown 

3.  I am currently job hunting 

4. I am learning how to transition into this new chapter of my life 

So what does that mean? 

Hopefully more time to blog!  

As I just mentioned, I recently moved back home, and the first few days were filled with lots of sorting and unpacking. In order to make room for all the new things I acquired during college (a.k.a mostly clothes and makeup), I had to sort through my dresser and closet for things I don't wear anymore. For instance, remember those Hollister polos from high school? So I went on an expedition to do something with my used clothes, and I wanted to let you all know of these options as well!

1. Try to sell back your clothes!

It all started this past spring when my roommates and I were cleaning out our closets. We decided to bring our unwanted clothes to a Crossroads Trading Co. which just opened in a plaza close to our condo. If you haven't heard of Crossroads, it is a used clothing store on the trendier side. They do have a small selection of new discounted clothes, but most of their inventory comes from people who sell back their clothes to Crossroads! Every season they come out with a flier which shows examples of the types of clothing/trends they are especially looking for during that time period. They will also price these items higher (and give you more cash back/store credit) due to the higher demand.

For Crossroads' buy back policy, they give you 50% store credit of what price they are marking your clothes. However, if you want cash they will only give you 30%. Depending on the store location and the associates working, sometimes they tend to be pickier on certain days. I've noticed they tend to be pretty brand conscious, so that may work in your favor or not. I took my clothes to a Crossroads near my home town. Most of my clothes were pretty dated, so I didn't expect them to take much. And I was right, they didn't take anything!

Another store that is much like Crossroads is Plato's Closet. Plato's Closet isn't seasonal like Crossroads, so they will look at any type of clothing regardless of what time of the year it is. Their buy back policy is a little different, since they only give you the option of 30-40% cash of what they price your clothes at. They do take a larger variety of used jewelry compared to Crossroads. For both stores, if the associates are busy or there are a lot of customers in front of you be prepared to wait. They usually take their time expecting your clothes for general wear/stains. I was in each store for 40 minutes! Unfortunately, Plato's Closet didn't take any of my stuff either!

2. Donate your clothes! 

And this is what I ended up doing with my clothes! Luckily, all of these stores including a Goodwill were within close proximity to each other. It's a painless process. Usually you just drive your car around to the back of the store, and someone helps you with your donation. I was out within five minutes. To be honest, it feels more altruistic knowing that my gently used, somewhat in style clothes are being sold at a much lower price to someone who needs them or at least enjoyed finding a good deal.

So whether you are trying to make some extra cash or doing a good deed, I hope this post helped someone out! I would love to know what you guys do with your old clothes!

Superlove & more blogging soon, 
Emily

P.S. After that clothing expedition, I went to get a haircut. I decided to go for a full straight fringe, and so far I'm liking it! Here's a picture straight out of the salon. I apologize for the little hairs on my face!

The Sunshine State.

Hello everyone :)

I'm back from vacation, and if you couldn't tell from the title I went to Florida! I usually go on vacation with just my immediate family, but this summer was different because my grandparents joined us. Although the pace of this vacation was more mellow, I definitely enjoyed bonding with them. Here's a little recap of what I did on vacation with some photos. Remember to click the pictures if you want to enlarge the photos or see them in better quality. 

We first flew to Orlando and while I was there I visited Universal Studios, specifically for the Harry Potter theme park, and Animal Kingdom in Disney World. It was so cool to see Hogwarts and Hogsmead come to life. They had shops like the Three Broomsticks, Honeydukes, and Zonko's. I even got to drink butter beer, which tasted like a delicious butter scotch malt slush. But, boy was it expensive at $11.50 for the drink as well as the plastic mug it comes in. I did keep the mug as souvenir though :)  Unfortunately I don't think the $85 for the ticket was completely worth it. The rest of the other areas within the park, like Toon Lagoon or Seuss Landing were pretty mediocre. I'm really glad I got to experience the Wizarding World of Harry Potter though. 

My family and I had a blast at Animal Kingdom! Maybe it's because I'm a sucker for anything Disney, but I enjoyed everything about the park. If you haven't been to Animal Kingdom in Disney World, think of it as an amusement park and a zoo in one! The park itself is beautiful and lush, with it's themed areas entitled Africa, Asia, and Dino USA. Not only do they have really fun rides, but there were also great opportunities to see many different types of animals, like apes and rhinos, in an environment that actually looked like their natural habitat rather than in cages or behind glass! They also have really beautifully performed shows like, Festival of the Lion King and the Finding Nemo Musical.   

I didn't want to bring my DSLR to the amusement parks, so unfortunately I don't have any pictures from these days. Sorry everyone, I didn't want my camera to get stolen or broken :(

We then drove to Fort Meyers and later Bradenton to relax at the beach. I loved the beaches in Florida. The sand was so white, fine and soft. It literally felt like flour between your toes! The water was also nice and warm and there was a huge abundance of seashells.  

 

While in that area we visited the Edison and Ford Winter Estates. This is basically a historical museum that preserved the vacation houses and grounds that Edison and Ford would travel to in the winter to escape the cold and continue their research. There were many exotic plants there, like bamboo which was used for Edison's bulb filaments and rubber tree's used for Ford's tires. Edison's house was so tech savy for time with electric lighting and an intercom system. I bet it would be equivalent to Bill Gates' house now! (Did you know upon entering Bill Gates' house guests wear a pin? This pin helps the room automatically adjust the temperature and lighting when the a guest walks in!)

 

Both my grandma and mom really enjoy growing their own plants, so we went to the Marie Selby Botanical Gardens. This Botanical Garden is known for it's wide variety of epiphytes, plants which grow on other plants or objects but are not parasitic. Although I myself do not have a green thumb, I still appreciated the beautiful scenary and I loved taking pictures here.

 

Even though I had fun on the trip, like everyone says, there is no place like home. I'm really glad to be back and away from Florida's humidity! I hope you enjoyed all the pictures :)


Superlove and Sunshine, 
Emily 

P.S. I got pretty tan from this trip! I wonder if you guys will be able to tell in photos :)

Two Decades.

Today was a good day.

Every time my birthday rolls around, I enjoy being able to reflect how much I have grown and matured over the years. More importantly than that, I love recognizing all the people who have constantly been with me along the journey. I am so blessed to have my family and friends who spent this special day with me. And lastly thank you to everyone who enjoys reading my blog and for leaving all the lovely comments. It's been a really great creative outlet for me :) 

Superlove & Red Velvet Cheescakes, 

Emily

P.S. Now it's time for vacation. See you all in 15 days. Expect a lot of pictures :)

10 Things I Love.

Remember me? 

It sure has been awhile since I last blogged. These past two weeks have been extremely busy for me. The hip hop dance team that I'm a member of had a big performance last weekend, so the week before was our hell week! This week I had 3 midterms, and I took my last one today! You can see what midterm madness has done to my friends and I in the section of my blog under "What am I up to". My eyes feel so strained from the reading and the studying... but now that everything is settling down I finally have some time to blog. I sure have missed everyone. 

The lovely beauty blogger Amy tagged me to do this fun tag called "10 Things I Love". If you haven't checked out her blog, be sure to stop by! Thanks for tagging me Amy :) Let's begin shall we?  

Rules:
1) State who gave you this award in your post
2) State 10 things that you love
3) Give this award to 10 other bloggers, listing them at the end of the post, 
and notify them with a lovely comment

Besides family, friends, and laughter, here are 10 things that I love in no particular order: 

1.) My DSLR and photography. 

 

Ever since my brother introduced me to photography during my senior year of high school and passed down his Canon Rebel XT to me, I've been hooked.  

2.) My Desktop

Quite self explanatory. I love it for school and surfing the net and plus my dad built it for me! 

3.) Biology/Psychology/Organic Chemistry

I'm a biological sciences major and even though the material can get quite challenging I still enjoy it! I'm also interested in specializing my major to neurobiology.  

4.) Music

I love how music can translate your feelings into sound. Especially when you're having a bad day, it's amazing how listening to the right song can instantly make you feel a little better. 

5.) My Planner

If you've read my blog, you've already seen this before. It's the perfect way to keep my life organized. 

6.) Makeup

Well this is a given :) 

(I just bought the MAC face & body foundation. I love it!) 

7.) Moleskines

The black one is more of a personal journal where I write whatever has been on my mind and what not. The red one I use to keep track of my expenses. I love how sturdy and compact they are. 

8.) Milk Tea 

This is from an older post, but ideally this would be a picture of pearl milk tea. I'm craving some right now!

9.) Good quotes or proverbs 

Whenever I'm down or need some inspiration/motivations, I love reading quotes. I actually made this "wall decal" from printing out the letters, pasting it on cardboard, and taping it to my wall!  

10.) Dancing   

I started dancing ballet when I was 5 and continued on into high school. Once I left for college I had to stop, because the college attend is too far from my dance studio. However, I decided to try out for a hip hop team on campus this year, and I fell in love with it ever since. The above photo is a picture of my class, "theta class". We are all the new members who made it this year! If you forgot what I look like, I'm in the bottom row and I'm wearing gray chucks!  If you want to watch the video, try spotting me on the front left around 0:16 and on the front right around 5:13 :)

I hope you guys enjoyed learning a little more about me from this tag! 

I tag:
Eujean 
Annie
Hussy 
Susan
Yana 
Winnie
And whoever else wants to participate in the tag!

Superlove & hopefully more blogging, 
Emily

Studying My Eyeballs Out

Yup it is finals week for me.

One week of intense studying (and perhaps some sleep deprived nights...) and then I get to go back home and enjoy spring break! Unfortunately for high schoolers and up finals week is inevitable... However I think there are a few ways to make it just a little less stressful than it already is :) Here are some tips and tricks that I have gained from past experience on how to survive finals week and also how to work more efficiently in general. Sadly, I can't guarantee that my advice will get you an A+ in your class (I really wish I could though!) but it might help you use your studying time more productively :)

1.) Invest in some type of planner/organizer and most importantly use it.

Whether it be a calender in your cellphone or a pocket planner, have something where you can visually see and write down important upcoming events.

I personally like planners that have a weekly set up as well as a monthly set up. That way I can make to do lists for that week as well as use the calender to see spatially when important events are coming up. It helps me keep track of what I need to do and how far in advance I should prepare for a certain event, for instance exams.

 

 

2.) Try listening to music while you study/work. 

I have a specific study playlist and it's filled with only instrumental pieces ( music with lyrics distracts me because then I start singing along!). Listening to this playlist every time I study has become a habit, so it helps me focus and gets me in the mood that it's time to get work done. 

If you're interested in what's on my playlist, try these: 

Aruarian Dance - Nujabes 

One Summer's Day - Joe Hisaishi 

3.) If you don't need a computer for your work, try to study in an area away from it. 

Unfortunately, I'm the type who gets really distracted when I have a computer screen with a web browser open. I could be looking at one of my professors lectures on his/her website and what do you know I'm some how on youtube or facebook! So unless you have really good self control (if you do I'm jealous!) try studying in the kitchen or in a study room at the library with out a computer. 

4.) Don't forget to take breaks, but make sure your breaks aren't longer than your studying periods! 

Try using your breaks productively by tidying up your room or outlining your schedule for tomorrow. I'm taking a break right now by writing this blog :) If you're really tired, take a power nap for 15-30 minutes. Studies show that power naps help increase alertness, productivity and memory. However don't go longer than that or you'll wake up feeling more tired than before!  

5.) When you take notes or create a study guide, try and use multiple colored pens/pencils. 

I usually write the bulk of my notes in black ink, and when there is something I need to remember like a vocabulary word or concept, I'll write it another color. I find that this really helps when reviewing old material, because I'm able to quickly acknowledge what is important.  It also really helps when you have to draw things out. 

 

6.) If you need to memorize something try making up an acronym or a story. 

By doing so it makes it a lot easier to memorize random terms that you don't use in everyday life. For instance in organic chemistry there is certain nomenclature used to represent the number of carbons in a chain. For carbon chains ranging from 1-4 carbons long, the prefixes methyl, ethyl, propyl, and butyl. To remember I use the sentence "Mom Eats Peanut Butter" to help me remember the order. I know it sounds silly, but hey do whatever works for you! :) 

7.) A week before finals stock up on easily prepared meals/snacks and try cooking in advance. This way you don't have to waste time cooking in the kitchen or driving to the grocery store or fast food restaurant. I usually have a frozen pizza and a couple of TV dinners in my freezer. I also like to make some type of pasta sauce, like spaghetti sauce with ground beef. Then all I have to do for dinner is boil some pasta, warm up my sauce, and I'm good to go :) For snacks, I always have a box of granola bars (Nature Valley Honey and Oats is my favorite!), cookies, and trail mix (I've currently been munching on Trader Joe's Simply Almonds, Caschews, and Chocolate Trek Mix).  

8.) Lastly, if you don't do as well as you want on your exam, at work, or whatever you've been allocating all your time to understand that you tried your best and there is always next time to improve :) 

Unfortunately, we all have bad days every now and then, but don't let that get you down from achieving success when the next opportunity arises!  

I hope that my advice is helpful! If you have any other tips and tricks, please leave them in a comment below! 

 

Superlove & Optimism, 

Emily 

P.S. I accidentally deleted almost all of my comments! :( I thought that the comment section was an inbox, so I pressed "delete" thinking it would clear the messages I already read and answered. I am so sorry if you left one! They were all really specially to me :(

P.P.S. The mirrors on your closet work great as dry erase boards! 

Mmm..Brunch.

During the weekday I never have time to make myself a decent breakfast. Usually my routine is wake up, get ready, grab a granola bar, fill up my nalgene bottle, and go. Oh the life of a college student...

That's why I love waking up on a Saturday mornings. 

It's so nice getting up on your own time (especially without that annoying alarm), looking at the clock, and realizing you have time to sleep in a little. 

What else do I like about weekends? 

Brunch.   

 

Fry some spam until golden brown to render out some of the fat.

I like adding some green onions to mine. It gives a very nice subtle flavor. 

 

Use the same pan! I fried the spam first so I wouldn't have to use extra oil. 

The grease from the spam helps keep the egg from sticking to the pan and 

it adds additional flavor. Don't forget to season your egg(s)! I like mine over easy :)

 

Toast some bread. And yes it is necessary to do this in a Hello Kitty toaster.

 

Assemble your meal and enjoy :) 

 

Don't forget to accompany your meal with a drink. 

I made myself hot honey milk tea.

 

Personally I like eating something sweet after having a savory meal. 

To make a yummy parfait, I used Greek vanilla flavored yogurt, granola, 

raspberries, and blueberries. You can substitute the berries with your favorite 

type of fruit. 

 

Yay for getting a serving of fruits in the morning. Also did you know that 

Greek yogurt is healthier than regular yogurt? The texture is a lot richer and thicker as well.
Yum. 

 

Have a great weekend everybody. I hope yours started off as well as mine. 

Superlove & Butter Cookies, 

Emily