OH
MY
LORD
SUBLIME'S READYYY
i said it would be a few weeks, but ahaha i couldn't wait to wrap up my design and start posting on the blog. read my new posts here.
the extent to which i've changed since i last wrote is shocking.
the extent to which my world has changed since i last wrote is even more shocking.
and if i'm going to accommodate both of those changes, then my blog is going to have to change, too. in style, in essence, maybe i'll throw in a new name, too. ha. you know me; i've never been able to last long without a blog makeover. i'm letting go of the persona i've held since i was eight years old. goodbye girlradio. goodbye nerd glasses and wanderlust, and the rest of the phases i've been through. i'm starting a new blog. i said it. sublime, my new blog, will be ready in a few weeks. more than the way it looks and the name, this time i'll be delivering different content. my high-powered feminist rants will be here to stay, but you'll be seeing a new side of me, the actual vulnerable human side ridden with emotions. the twelve-year-old that you've never seen. this blog will always be up, so i can remind myself of my beginning on the interwebs - but i'm moving forward in the best ways. so there's your teeny glimpse at what i'm working on and what's been consuming me since my last post.
so as my last post here on this blog, i wanted to talk about what has changed since i last posted.
lol excuse me trump is president?? um that happened like half a month ago but i'm. not. over. it. i'm 500% serious when i say that i don't understand how our nation could have voted for an orange scumbag that reverses the progress america has made the last few decades. i drafted two posts, one when he was initially elected and one after the inauguration, but i never ended up finishing them. trust me - this is the most condensed version of all the thoughts i have, but that's not to say i don't have opinions. bahahahajaha when haven't i.
i got a twitter! and tbh it's my preferred social media platform rn bc it's basically a community of people who rant 25/8. i don't mean to sound like a teenager but lmao my tweets convey the rawest, realest version of myself. writing about the little bits and pieces of my life, even if it's only in 140 characters, help me come to terms with them. and being able to express myself is the biggest part of the transformation i've undergone. follow me @snayhaah ;))
my troye sivan obsession has grown to its peak. there's no moment in the day that i'm not either listening to his music, watching his fetus youtube videos, or thinking about song lyrics of his that i could use as instagram captions. let me spell it out for you: i'm that one girl who should probably be troye's pr manager bc you know i let everyone at school know when his music video for heaven was coming out. asdfghjkl i need a new album like rn.
OML MY LIFE GOAL IS TO BE ONE OF THE KIDS FROM STRANGER THINGS LIKE WHY AREN'T I ALREADY. eleven's my spirit animal and idek if i told yall but i dressed up as her for halloween. and there's this one h&m bomber jacket i bought as part of the costume that i wear every day, even when the weather doesn't call for it, so i can live my life as bombdiggity as she does. mileven jancy fillie agh. and dustin. how could i forget about dustin.
middle school has come into full blast. i've learned a lot more about real friends and snakes, and these past few months i've dealt with both. if i'm being honest i've literally met so many people who are such a big part of my life that i could never give them enough credit. the kind of people who stay up late texting me with the best advice, who share pinterest boards with me of all the instagram pictures we should take together, who never gave up on me even when i was dealing with the worst. tysm. i needed you and you were there. and even as a person myself, i've changed from not the people that i've met, but what i've gone through. a few days ago it was valentine's day, and it had been only a month since i had cut a toxic group of friends out of my life. and honestly, that day i learned what it felt like to be appreciated. i was overwhelmed with brownies & candy & rice krispies & balloons & letters & boba. and middle school has also brought a tighter schedule. i'm more busy, but that means i've learned time management and how to make time for the things that matter. and that's one of the most crucial things i've picked up on.
i've grown as a feminist. i still believe in activism for the rights of women, the lgbtq community, and people of color; that'll never change. but i've also been reading about the concept of reverse discrimination and whether that really does exist in our society. to prove that feminism is about gender equality as a whole - and that that's what i firmly believe in - i've been researching male victims of rape and domestic violence. i've also been learning about prejudice against whites around the world. and to prove that i'm open to different beliefs and ideas, i've watched a few of lauren southern's videos (even though some of the things she says outrage me), from the point of view of someone with firm left-wing beliefs. when sublime comes out, you can expect a breakdown post about some of the discrimination men and the white community face.
and that's all i have to say :) this is something of a closing post on this blog, except for the post in which i'll share sublime with y'all, ofc. hopefully we can work our way into these new changes together, and i'm looking forward to interacting with old and new blogging friends on sublime ♡
This is a post I've had in the works for a long time.
I went to India recently.
There's an extremely significant difference in beauty standards, and you can see it walking through the drugstore aisles. In India, they're stocked with creams designed to lighten your skin. Everywhere you go, you see billboards and advertisements for skin whitening brands like Fair & Lovely that correlate fair skin with a happier, more successful life. Girls live in fear of the sun, wasting away inside or in the shade, too afraid to tan. The reason for that is that farmers and people who work in the fields are obviously tan, so lighter skin is seen as a step up on the economic and social ladder of South Asian society.
I remember flipping through matrimonial ads on a long car ride on my recent trip to India (and I could talk about how I feel about objectifying women by advertising them for marriage, but that's for another day). In short, a matrimonial advertisement is a person publishing a description of themselves in an outlet like the Internet or a newspaper and contact information that potential suitors could reach them with. I would see women throw around words like "tall" and "educated" and "slim," but what bothered me the most was "fair." If those brides had been dark-skinned, even with the same body and education level, would it have been as easy for them to find someone to marry?
I've also read about families where lighter-skinned children are treated better, and it's made me think about how much regard we give to something we're born with and can't control. If you watch a Bollywood movie, there's a nonexistent chance that you'll find a dark-skinned main character. In fact, it's much more likely that you'll find a plus-sized or curvy woman as a lead than a dark woman. That doesn't represent India as a whole, because only a few people are fair, but that's what many people desire to have. It also stems from the British colonization of India; seeing that, there's a long-held notion that white skin equates to power.
One of my best friends, even having lived all of her life as an American, was relentlessly made fun of for her darker skin growing up. I was born with olive skin (still on the lighter side of the spectrum), so although I can't necessarily relate to her struggles, I accept that I'll never be white.
Shadeism (also known as colorism) is a counterpart of racism - it's not oppression based on race or ethnic background in general, but it's explicitly based on skin color. It's especially prevalent within races.
Shadeism isn't something that only occurs in Asia and Africa. The issue wasn't her race in particular, but rather her skin color. Most people would look down on the concept of skin lightening or say "That's messed up!" if they ever saw a product commercial, but American society isn't much better.
We probably haven't thought twice about the tan-skin-is-better stigma, but if girls are going to the extent of killing themselves in tanning beds and dousing their skin in bronzer, maybe telling girls that being pale is something to be ashamed of only hurts their body image. It's gotten to the point where a psychological dependence on tanning, dubbed "tanorexia," exists.
It's like there's no way of being perfect, because recently, I've heard of so many scandals with black celebrities being whitewashed in magazines (look up the Kerry Washington InStyle controversy). In an American employment discrimination case, Etienne v. Spanish Lake Truck & Casino Plaza, an employee was kept from advancing because her manager deemed her "too black." An African-American sorority was found to uphold the "paper bag test," by which they wouldn't accept any members whose skin was darker than a paper bag. There's even the time that Takara Allen, a biracial woman, was told by a Tinder date that she should consider bleaching her skin because she'd be "so much prettier if she was whiter." All of those examples promote the beauty ideal that you can't be too much of something. You can't be too pale and you can't be too dark.
Why can't we embrace our skin as it is? If we tan, so what? If we lose that tan, so what? As long as we do what's healthy, skin will be just what it is: skin.
This past Friday was my lovely blogging friend Lexie's 3-year blogiversary (you can find her blog, What Lexie Loves, here!), and to celebrate, she's called upon the blogging community to do a Q&Fave challenge in which we have to create and answer 10 - 30 original favorites questions. I'm going to take a stab at 15, so here we go ;)
favorite clothing store
AHHHH I'd have to say H&M. But honorable mention for Charlotte Russe and A'Gaci.
favorite style staple
Ripped jeans. They're so easy to incorporate into an outfit and you can dress it up or down however you'd like.
favorite makeup product
Mascara or a really good bold lip always adds class.
favorite starbucks drink
I'm a frappuccino person, but my order always differs between Pumpkin Spice, Caramel, and Double Chocolatey Chip depending on whatever I decide that day. So basically, one of those three.
favorite fast-food restaurant
Definitely Chipotle! The reason I gravitate towards eating there is because it makes me feel healthy for ordering lettuce every time and it's delicious. I always skip guac, though, because my best friend's mom is, like, the guac master.
favorite celebrity
Emma Watson or Troian Bellisario. They're both amazing. But as to who I could legit see myself being best friends with, Millie Bobby Brown.
favorite instagram account
The Urban Outfitters feed. It suits my aesthetic so well - it's absolutely gorgeous.
favorite series to binge-watch
I love Pretty Little Liars and Stranger Things! I can't decide between them. I'm also sort of watching the first few episodes of Gossip Girl, but I don't know where I'm going with that.
favorite aesthetic book cover
Either The Thousandth Floor by Katharine McGee or the covers to both To All The Boys I've Loved Before and P.S. I Still Love You by Jenny Han. Also, pretty much every redesigned Harry Potter book.
favorite book trilogy
lol i knew everyone would add "favorite book series" to their list so i tried to be creative and did trilogy instead.
To be honest, I read the Anna and the French Kiss trilogy by Stephanie Perkins this summer and absolutely loved it. I have a huge character crush on St. Clair - teehee :)
favorite shade of black
I LOVE BLACK. IT'S MY COLOR CRUSH (IDK IF THAT'S A THING BUT I'MMA MAKE IT ONE).
My favorite shade of this gloriously diverse color is hands down matte black. It's this amazing kind of off-black which is pretty much halfway between grey and jet black.
favorite youtuber
Superwoman! As a proud unicorn and member of Team Super, I'm proud of her #GirlLove movement - and how she can be one of the most hilarious, down-to-earth, relatable people ever but still stand up for what she believes in and make a difference. I mean, I've never not laughed so hard I peed watching one of her videos.
favorite emoji
THERE ARE SO MANY.
one of these:
haha I definitely agree that emojis are the language of the gods.
favorite song
Sweater Weather by The Neighbourhood. It's been out for a while, but I still love it.
favorite accent
I love British and Australian accents! I'm sorry for being a boring American girl who thinks they're adorably charming :)
2013.
Wow, that was a long time ago.
Donald Trump, white Vans, and Harambe hadn't seen the light yet, and I was just that weird geeky kid in elementary school with an immense tooth gap and glasses who kind of sang sometimes. Who also ended up prancing on the stage, ego and all, a few months later in a red wig that made me look like a Halloween try-hard and eye makeup my mom had messed up on as Ariel in The Little Mermaid. So basically, I was socially awkward and I thought I was popular. And I started a blog, my humble abode on the Internet I share with fellow weird people who rant.
I considered what I wanted to do for this post a lot. Something special, something to commemorate the three years I've been blogging ... something to show how much I've changed. I wear contacts, for one, I have an irrational fear of changing my hair color in any way, and I can get that winged liner right on at least one eye. Myself.
But, hey, I'm normal. My idiocy hasn't left me, and I'm still figuring everything out, trial and error. I still feel doubtful about whether I really do have a cognitive condition that impairs my mental growth, and I learn and work my way through life through failure I don't learn from.
I'm still in this process of finding myself, of understanding who I am and where I want to go. So, in honor of 10:07 PM on September 27, 2013, let me reintroduce myself to you.
Hi.
I'm Sneha. That's snay-hah. Don't mispronounce my name.
In three words, I'm a basic brown girl. I like Starbucks. My entire closet is basically an H&M catalog. Nutella is the bane of my existence. I'm obsessed with Pretty Little Liars. I say "savage" way too much. Draco Malfoy is my spirit animal. I've probably posted pictures of aesthetically pleasing food a few times on Instagram, and yes, how any given place I'm going to will fit into my feed is my primary concern. If I'm not responding to your texts, I'm probably on Tumblr. I'm fluent in emoji. I waste my life on YouTube.
I'm also a crazy opinionated, hardcore feminist. I contradict misogyny. I don't stand for racism, homophobia, transphobia, anything. I don't care if I'm the only person in the room who can define intersectional feminism or cultural appropriation.
And Nerd Glasses and Wanderlust is where I talk about my thoughts, my adventures, my opinions, and my dreams.
Gosh, I can't believe it's been three years.
1) Pumpkin spice frappucinos. Also, National Frappe Day.
2) The weather. It's warm yet cold - fall nights are perfect for snuggling under your blanket.
3) Cuddly oversized sweaters.
4) Fairy lights.
6) Leaves.
5) Instagram feeds filled with pictures of leaves.
6) Fireplaces.
7) Autumnal scents and candles.
8) Halloween.
9) Scary movies.
10) Haunted houses.
11) My birthday :)
12) My boots, coming out of hibernation.
13) Rain.
14) Instagram feeds with pictures of rain pounding down on windows.
15) Street lights.
16) Mist.
17) Thanksgiving.
18) Thanksgiving break.
19) DOESN'T THE WORD AUTUMN JUST SOUND SO BEAUTIFUL.
20) Cold shoulder tops.
21) October, National Pizza Month.
22) Black Friday shopping.
23) Apparently, there's a holiday in November called Stay at Home Because You're Well Day. Basically, you stay home from school or work - not because you're sick, but because you're well.
24) The fall color scheme.
25) Warm cookies.
Yeah, I'm boss enough to start and end my list with food.
"I'm sorry I look like a mess. I didn't have time to do my hair this morning."
Hi everyone! Today I just wanted to talk about self-respect, which is something I've mentioned several times on Nerd Glasses and Wanderlust and will definitely continue to.
Why do we apologize for our appearance? When we haven't put effort into how we look, it feels like we have this natural tendency to say that we're sorry. First of all, it's not something to apologize for, and second of all, hey, it's not something to apologize to someone else for. You could be in a T-shirt and sweats, but it's not fair to call yourself a mess. Besides, unless your appearance will magically cure cancer, it's not as though you're not fulfilling some unspoken duty to the world.
I generally judge people not only by how they treat others, but themselves, too. I have to admit that I'm a person who relies on self-deprecation for humor often. But what about when I'm being completely serious? It's not nearly as enjoyable to be around someone's who's constantly negative ... or someone who thinks that I'll look at them any differently if they're not dressed their best.
Here's the difference: light-hearted self-deprecation would sound something like, "I'm so clumsy. I literally crash into everything I pass." As a self-identified klutz, I know that I trip frequently and I've had many awkward moments, and I acknowledge it. At the same time, I know that it's not something that's going to save the world if I get right, so it's not like I sit at home and cry about how graceful everyone I know is in comparison to me. But if you said something like, "I'm literally the ugliest person in the entire universe! EVERYTHING about me is so terrible," that's completely different. I usually don't make comments about my appearance or someone else's appearance for humor, because I don't find it funny.
Self-respect is something that people don't place enough emphasis on. The Golden Rule is to treat others the way you want to be treated, but does that include yourself? I feel like it's just as important to love yourself and to look past your flaws, because in a way, that can determine how much other people like being around you. An openly insecure person probably isn't too shy to tear down someone else, so self-respect and respect for other people really do go hand in hand.
Remember this: it's easy to preach, but not as easy to follow through. Go look at yourself in the mirror once you're done reading this post and compliment yourself. It doesn't have to be physical, since that's not all there is to a person. You could talk about anything, from how much you love your eyes to recognizing how proud you are of how you did on that last science test.
No. I mean actually go and do it. It might be one of those things that you think is stupid and worthless, but it's not. It goes a long way, and I'm happy to say that I'm a person who has so many moments where I just feel beautiful.
Before I finish this post, there are just a few things you should take away: love yourself, compliment yourself regularly, realize that it's okay to loosen up once in a while and just make fun of yourself, and NEVER apologize for your appearance.
And if all else fails ...
Hi everyone!
Whether we like it or not, school is going to begin soon. I'll be starting middle school (seventh grade) on August 17, and I've been frantically watching every single back-to-school YouTube video I've found. I've also kind of developed this arsenal of life hacks for when school starts up again, so I'm going to share some right here!
1. I've seen this around quite a bit. Copy and paste your essays into Google Translate and listen to the audio. When you proofread an essay, your eyes might glaze over grammatical errors, but they're much easier to point out when you're listening to someone.
THIS IS LIKE, EVERYONE. BUT WHAT IF THERE WAS AN EASIER WAY TO ACHIEVE A SIMILAR EFFECT?
2. To feel refreshed when you wake up instantaneously, keep a jar of dark roast coffee beans on your nightstand. When you wake up and smell them, it gives you that kick of caffeine without actually having to put effort into making coffee.
3. To force yourself to leave bed in the morning, place your phone/alarm clock on the other side of the room. Even if you wanted to snooze it or turn it off, you can't silence it from under the covers.
4. If you ever feel like all your notebooks look the same and you struggle finding your books when you need them, grab a colored marker and mark the pages from the top. You can also write the name of the subject the notebook is for on the cover in the same color, and that's how you can color-code your books for easy access.
5. If you're ever doing research, and for some stupid reason your tabs all randomly close, just re-open the browser and press Ctrl-Shift-T (Windows) or Command-Shift-T (Mac). You'll instantly regain your tabs.
6. Let's be honest: everything is better when it's Tumblr, so I pretty much eat, sleep, and breathe cute notes. There's inspiration galore online for different writing styles and decorations you can incorporate into your notes to make studying that much more enjoyable. And for anyone who doesn't want to bother, just neater handwriting can go a long way. Besides, which would you rather read from - the printout on the left or the cuter version on the right?
6. Have you ever felt like you've been rereading a paragraph in your notes or your textbook over and over and the information still isn't sticking? Writing out what you remember can actually help you with comprehension, and it's easier to retain information like that rather than from simply reading.
7. If you ever need to lengthen a typed essay, just make the font size of the punctuation larger. You can't always get away with this. If your teacher grades the length of your essay in terms of words and not in pages, it won't make a difference.
8. When you have a new notebook, leave a few pages at the beginning to create a table of contents to organize your notes. This makes it incredibly easy to find notes for the chapter/lesson you're being tested on without having to search for it.
9. Reread your notes within 24 hours of taking them. This will help you to consolidate the information in your mind and help you become better prepared for your test.
10. You know that dreadful feeling you get when someone asks for gum? Well, that's avoidable. Keep an extra empty box of gum in your backpack. Whenever anyone asks you for a piece, you can pull out the empty box and say that was your last one.
Back in 2009 at the VMAs, Kanye West uttered the fateful words "I'mma let you finish" as he interrupted Taylor Swift's acceptance speech for Best Female Video and explained why he thought Beyonce should have won the award. (Google "kanye west taylor swift vma memes" and explore the results. Please. There hasn't been a more meme-able incident since.) This feud started 7 years ago and probably won't be ending anytime soon.
Beyonce herself was horrified, and I can't imagine how Taylor must have felt responding to that, because she was standing there while Kanye gave a speech insinuating that she didn't deserve the award. Many celebrities came to Taylor's defense, including President Obama and, yes, Katy Perry. Kanye, supposedly feeling regretful for his actions, publicly apologized to Taylor. He eventually backtracked - when, in an interview with The New York Times in 2013, Kanye said he wasn't sorry for the VMAs incident and that he'd only apologized because he'd caved in from societal pressure.
Even though he made that public statement, he and Taylor have actually been friends since. Taylor seemed to have forgiven him, and when he announced last year that he was going to run for President in 2020, she offered to be his running mate.
And then Kanye showed that he wasn't done throwing punches, even following his newfound friendship with Taylor. This year, he released his song "Famous," featuring the lyrics "I feel like Taylor and me might still have s*x / Why? I made that b*tch famous." The world was sent into rage mode, with some calling Kanye "creative" and others saying that it was a really messed-up move on his part. Taylor even called him out in her Grammy acceptance speech:
“And as the first woman to win Album of the Year at the Grammys twice, I want to say to the young woman out there, there are going to be people along the way who try to undercut your success or take credit for your accomplishments or your fame. But if you just focus on the work and you don’t let those people sidetrack you, someday when you get where you’re going, you will look around and you will know it was you and the people who love you who put you there, and that will be the greatest feeling in the world.”
If possible, things escalated further when he included Taylor in a series of nude wax representations (among them being Rihanna, Kim Kardashian, George W. Bush, and Donald Trump) for the "Famous" music video.
Taylor and her team then made the claim that they were never asked for consent to include those lyrics in his song - or to include that nude wax representation of her in his video, which he would have probably had to do. Kim Kardashian (Kanye's wife) stepped up in a GQ interview to call Taylor a liar who was taking advantage of how easy it was to play the victim, and went so far as to say that she actually had a recording of a call in which Kanye asked for Taylor's permission to use those lyrics.
Drama.
Taylor's team tried to make sure that Kimye didn't release the recording of the call, but Kim, in an attempt to defend her husband, Snapchatted the full recording. Be prepared for some graphic language.
Take note of the fact that while Kanye informed her about the line "I feel like Taylor and me might still have s*x," he never mentioned that he would refer to her in the next line as "that b*tch." At the same time, this made Taylor look bad, because she'd previously made it seem like Kanye never called to ask her for approval of anything. Taylor took to social media to defend herself.
There are a whole lot of sub-feuds that evolved from this, includingthe Chloe vs. Khloe drama.
So what do I think?
First of all, why the heck did Kanye record the phone call in the first place? That's crazy sketchy to begin with, but his side claims that he records everything he does because they could include it in a future documentary.
I'm with everyone who thinks we should move on from this. I might be leaning more towards Taylor, though - let's be honest. Would you want Kanye West to call you "that b*tch" in one of his songs? I don't think it was right for her to act like she wasn't aware of at least the lyric "I feel like me and Taylor might still have s*x," however, and I can see where people who say she's just playing the victim are coming from.
Taylor also does have the grounds to sue or pursue legal action, since it's a crime in California, where this took place, to record a phone call without the other person knowing. That's why whenever you, for example, would contact an insurance company, they always have to make it clear that the call is being recorded before the conversation begins.
The most horrible part about this is that other than that one Instagram post Taylor made, she hasn't said much. She hasn't written vengeful Tweets like Kanye has, and, hey, she doesn't even have a Snapchat. She's been pretty much innocent this whole time and hasn't tried to add any fuel to the fire, yet all these people are blaming her and calling her a liar.
Conclusion:
1) let's all mourn for Tom Hiddleston 👏🏽
2) this is probably a publicity stunt
Hi everyone!
Today, I decided not to do a typical post, but instead commemorate all 150 posts here on Nerd Glasses and Wanderlust. I've been blogging for nearly three years (September 27 is my third blogiversary!), and I love being able to interact and connect with my international readers.
Now that I have more experience blogging, I'd like to branch out. I already talk frequently about my opinions, and I've recently started doing more relatable, humor-oriented posts. At the same time, my blog will probably become more mainstream, no matter what Urban Dictionary has to say about that word, because I feel that's where blogging is leading me. I'll probably be commenting more on things like pop culture, which I've never really done before (so expect an upcoming post where I explain my stance when it comes to the Kimye/Taylor feud). I realized that I want to show that I can be someone who speaks out about feminism and social issues - but isn't afraid to fangirl over my favorite celebrities or express my addiction to YouTube. I think this will kind of be a new beginning for my blog.
You may have seen this coming; I love to redesign my blog often, so that's why you've probably noticed Nerd Glasses and Wanderlust looking drastically different recently. I've been learning that you can't go wrong with black, grey, and white, which are probably my new ultimate favorite colors (URGH I LOVE MATTE BLACK SO MUCH), and I'm taking a more minimalistic approach. Even though I love bright pops of color, I want to keep it more subdued and simple this time (I did keep some of the pink accents from the previous design, though).
So what you think of the new blog design? Let me know!
INDIA MODE.
//
1. When it's a totally insignificant Tuesday but the lines are still miles long.
2. When you swear that your favorite store advertised a sale online, but everything is still, like, $60.
3. When you realize you can find that shirt you've been eyeing for months in EVERY FUDGING SIZE EXCEPT YOURS.
4. When you *geniusly* decided two weeks ago to wait for that sweater you liked to go on sale. And now you can't find it anywhere.
5. When the only store you intended to go to is closed by the time you get to the mall.
6. When the line for the dressing rooms is so long it practically extends out of the store.
7. When the dressing rooms are closed, so you try on those new jeans over what you're already wearing and look like an idiot.
8. When all of the mall benches are occupied.
9. When there's no air conditioning.
10. When all the clothes looked great online but look like poo in real life.
11. When everything is so uncomfortably tight, you can't get those leggings past your knees.
12. When the mannequins seem so happy in those clothes, you envision yourself wearing them, and you never actually turn out looking that way.
13. When your clothes end up being damaged.
14. When you have to deal with those people with designer sunglasses and *trillions* of bags.
15. When the dressing rooms lock behind you, so you have to literally call a store assistant if you ever want to see that beautiful skirt you were trying on next again.
16. did i even mention parking.
17. That moment of panic when someone tries to open your dressing room door to see if there's anyone inside and you think the door will magically unlock.
18. When you invest your entire day in shopping and end up purchasing absolutely nothing.
19. When the food at the food court sucks.
20. WHEN YOU REALIZE THE MALL IS FUDGING CLOSING IN 2.5 MILLISECONDS BUT YOU'RE STILL TRYING ON CLOTHES.
OH NO I HATE MYSELF FOR THESE WIDE GAPS BETWEEN POSTS. I have so many drafted blog posts that I haven't finished ... I'll be going to India from July 27 to August 16, so I'm extremely set on scheduling a bunch of posts for that time period.
I have a flight from San Francisco to Seattle next Wednesday, and from there, I'll be flying to Dubai and then Bangalore, India. The whole getting-there process takes over a day, but what's really important about this trip is that we're approaching India from a more touristic mindset. I haven't been to India, where I'm from, since before starting first grade. Now, I'm going into seventh grade - and my older sister, Stanford University. In previous trips to India, we mostly spent time with our family, and we stay put in one city the whole time. Now, we're jet-setting all over the huge country. We might even venture into Bhutan.
I'd love to do a few travel posts about my experience as soon as I return. But the first thing I'll be doing once I'm off that plane? Sleeping. India is 12.5 hours ahead of California, where I live, and I do have school the very next day, so that's a bit of a fudge-y situation :|
For the time being, I think I'd like to talk about something that's going to change in my life.
I'll be going into middle school. For the past six years, my school has been a constant. It's overwhelming to think back to the elementary school I went to - and think about like that, in the past tense.
I'm excited, because the middle school I'll be going to is absolutely gargantuan (which is officially my favorite word ever), so for the first time, I'll be exposed to students from different schools. I think I also have somewhat mixed feelings, however, because OH MY GOODNESS WE HAVE TO GO TO SCHOOL AN HOUR EARLIER HOW. WILL. I. WAKE. UP. Anyone who knows me knows that I'm notorious for being consistently tardy (trust me, my friends can vouch), so I'll probably have to somehow knock some responsibility into myself ;)
This was more of a short post, I know, which is exactly why I'm working on producing more content.
YAAAAS HAPPY JULY.
To celebrate the Fourth of July (may the fourth be with you!), my family's driving up to Crater Lake in Oregon for the weekend. From what I've seen so far, the lake is definitely Instagram-worthy, and I'm stoked to leave.
I've just realized that we've almost finished off the first half of summer, and I just want to talk about what it's been like so far for me. Just like last year, I've been taking summer math credit courses, and let me just say that Common Core frazzles me. :|
I also want to mention that I'm now entering middle school. I've just been promoted from sixth grade and to be honest, it's difficult to process the fact that I'll never be a student at my (former) elementary school again.
From June 9 (which was promotion) to June 12, my family drove down to SoCal to hit up Universal Studios Hollywood (yes I was wearing my Gryffindor robe and Triwizard Tournament shirt the while day) and Palm Springs. I captioned my Insta post the same way: my fangirl heart exploded my first time drinking butterbeer, dining at The Three Broomsticks, riding a hippogriff, exploring Hogwarts, AND CAN WE JUST TAKE A MOMENT TO APPRECIATE MY GORGEOUS HERMIONE WAND REPLICA.
such a beauty
also be a patient human being as i try out this dope filter
Spending a day at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter and exploring the rest of the Universal Studios was insanely fun. Make a beeline to the Jurassic Park water ride as soon as you get there! My Gryffindor-ness got the best of me and I volunteered to sit unprotected at the edge of the coaster, but out of all the rides outside the Wizarding World, it was definitely my favorite - wait until that huge drop! I was totally drenched :) I can't believe my family doesn't visit more often, given how frequently we drive down to LA. When we went to Palm Springs, we boarded the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway and we were brought up to San Jacinto State Park, where we hiked for a few hours. Frankly, the views were breathtaking.
We're also planning to fly out to India at the end of July! I'm Indian-American, but I haven't visited my home country since before I started first grade. Now that I'm going back as an incoming seventh grader, it's also in part a way to celebrate my older sister going off to Stanford for college and the six years I've spent at my elementary school.
I don't think I've already mentioned how excited I am for the release of the Cursed Child on July 31st. It's incredibly mind-boggling to think that it's been two years since I spent the summer in Maryland for my sister's summer internship there. That was the summer I virtually met some of my closest blogging friends, and that also means my third blogiversary is fast approaching. Additionally, that was the summer I finished reading Harry Potter for the first time, so I'm pscyhed to be able to read new content. Speaking of which, have you already been sorted into your Ilvermorny houses? If so, which one? I'm a proud Gryffindor-Wampus (Pottermore sorted me into both). Happy Canada Day to all my lovely Canadian friends and happy early Fourth of July :)
How are your summers going?
DISCLAIMER: Pretty Little Liars Season 6 spoilers ahead!
1. Okay, Sneha. Take a deep breath. I believe in you. [stuffs carefully curated handful of bubble gum flavored jelly beans in mouth]
2. At least if my mom yells at me for being sedentary all day, I can tell her I ran a marathon.
3. Wait, what? Since when was the fourth season of this other random show available?
4. You're supposed to be finishing the sixth season of PLL, not getting distracted by baby elephant videos!
5. [bites nail] They're so fudging cute.
6. Wait oh my god I've been looking for a shirt like this my whole life urgh. WHY DO ADS EXIST.
7. OK, let's get started.
8. Charlotte died? Who killed her? Let's consult the wiki.
9. Darn it, I have to actually be a patient human being because the identity of her murderer hasn't been revealed yet.
10. i cant do this.
11. I just realized the show is probably ending after Season 7.
12. How will I survive? [begins to sob]
13. I don't know why everyone hates Spaleb. I mean, dude, Hanna approved. But, to be honest, Haleb had SO MUCH chemistry.
14. What does Toby think about this?
15. Let's go rewatch that video of Keegan and Shay reacting to Spaleb.
16. hey keegs thats your woman.
17. "I don't know what to do about this."
18. Let's just get on task again.
19. Aren't these Season 6 promotional covers, like, so fudging gorgeous?
20. They look so fabulous in the 6B cast photos.
21. My babies. [single tear rolls down cheek]
22. Spencer's bangs are really growing on me.
23. I have a character crush on Caleb. And I'm proud.
24. Remember when fetus Caleb had long hair? The good old days.
24. I'm sure I found a behind-the-scenes video for this episode.
25. Oh, I love it when Ashley pranks them.
26. Did Ezra just scream at them?
27. Yeah, he's definitely not the same person he was before the time jump.
28. No, Mom, I was just about to find out who A is!
29. I love how I say that every episode even though it took six seasons for them to reveal it was CeCe.
30. OK FINE I'LL COME FOR DINNER.
In honor of LGBT Pride Month, I decided to do this post, which has been sitting in the back of my head for months.
You may have already heard about the shooting in Orlando, Florida a few days ago at a gay nightclub called Pulse. It's the largest mass shooting in US history, with 50 dead and 53 more left with critical injuries. The shooting was most likely a hate crime - someone had to lose control and be disturbed enough by people loving who they want to love that they'd murder.
Personally, I've never found anything wrong or sinful or weird when it comes to homosexuality. Sometimes, homophobia is faith-based. And other times, people are just scared of what's different. Love is love. When a gay person chooses to love someone of their own gender, it doesn't affect anyone else. That's their own life decision, and I firmly believe that they shouldn't be treated any differently because of it. Why should they feel uncomfortable being who they are?
Above all, while being gay or bisexual might be an important part of your identity, it's not the only. I wish we could live in a world where being different doesn't matter - where we can look past it. A world where a gay person coming out would be hardly something to blink at. Where the word "normal" doesn't even play a role in our world's dynamics, because it's not a natural assumption that everyone is straight.
I definitely want to acknowledge transphobia and bathroom rights for transgender people. I'll just define "transgender" accurately first.
Basically, a transgender person is someone who doesn't feel like they're the gender printed on their birth certificates. They prefer to experiment with the stereotypes of the opposite sex. That could refer to a boy who grew up playing with dolls or trying on makeup, or a girl who liked to play with Hot Wheels and Legos. When you think about it like that, it's really not a big deal. A tomboy could very well be considered transgender.
It's disappointing that anti-LGBT laws like the Public Facilities Privacy & Security Act, or the North Carolina bathroom bill (which states that in government buildings, trans people must use bathrooms that comply with the gender printed on their birth certificates) still exist. The law immediately received a lot of backlash, with some bands, singers, and other performers cancelling all of their shows in the state of North Carolina. The United States Department of Justice even sued NC Governor Pat McCrory, the North Carolina Department of Public Safety, and the University of North Carolina system for directly defying multiple civil rights acts that have already been passed. Transgender people who don't/can't modify their birth certificates are immediately prevented from using bathrooms that fit their gender identity. In North Carolina, only people who undergo sex reassignment surgery (surgery that changes your gender) can alter their birth certificates.
But let's look at it from an alternate perspective. A cisgender (someone who is not transgender) man might feel uncomfortable if a trans man who still looks like a female uses the same bathroom. Sure, there are virtually no transgender rapists and the probability of being assaulted by a trans person in a restroom is extremely low. But at the same time, there's still a chance that a trans man, since he'd still look feminine, could be assaulted by a cisgender man when he steps foot in the men's bathroom.
I personally don't have an opinion in this situation, because there's always some unavoidable downside, and I don't agree with the whole for-the-greater-good thing. If you're against the bill, cisgender people will feel uncomfortable. If you're for the bill, transgender people will feel uncomfortable. And if you're neutral, if you believe in there only being unisex bathrooms, it's generally inconvenient for everyone. I do think I'm leaning towards the against-the-bill side, because when a cisgender person feels uncomfortable, they're judging people merely by how they look. That's why I'd like to give a shout-out to Target, which announced that employees and customers can use the bathroom that complies with their gender identity.
And then there's complete, horrendous transphobia. One cisgender woman walked into the women's bathroom at a restaurant and apparently, another customer using the bathroom lashed out, believing she was transgender because of the way she looked. The cisgender woman later shared the experience on social media, stating that she'd gotten a taste of the day-to-day prejudice trans people face.
Whether you're gay or straight or trans or cis, you're perfect just the way you are. Homophobia or transphobia is terrible, and we shouldn't promote that idea.
Let's wave our rainbow flags.
people make the world go round.
we share our thoughts.
our opinions.
our ideas.
we have conflict.
sometimes we work it out.
sometimes we don't.
but empathy is the foundation of a person.
we connect to people.
we listen to them.
and along the way, we become better people ourselves.
empathy is like a seed.
every day you water it.
every day you watch it grow.
and it becomes a tree.
it's small.
but then it's big
and then it's the tallest tree there ever was.
sometimes people try to cut your tree
and it's hard to see things from their point of view.
sometimes there's a storm
and it's easier to sit and feel sorry for yourself.
a tree grows from the bottom up
and its roots are what keeps it standing.
empathy is courage.
empathy is strength.
empathy is hope.
the world is a good place
but it's a bad place.
every day new friendships are made
and every day old friendships are lost.
no one is what they seem
and you don't see everything.
the most popular girl in school
could come home and cry.
the most happy boy you know
could come home every day only to feel unappreciated.
the friendliest girl you've met
could come home and berate her family.
the smartest boy you've come across
could come home to be told he was never good enough.
empathy is the knowledge
that everyone is fighting their own battles.
some people couldn't care less about money or power or fame
if they can't have what they want most, to be happy.
some people wish that one person reached out
and showed that they cared.
when you hurt someone
whether with your words or your hands
they break a little bit inside
even if they don't show it.
everyone cares what other people think.
it's human nature.
empathy is realizing that you can affect someone so easily.
empathy is realizing that you have the choice
to make someone smile every day.
empathy is realizing that nothing is more powerful
than kindness.
empathy is realizing that
you know what?
life is hard.
not just for you
but for everybody.
everyone feels pain
and loss.
you're not the only one
who sits in your bed
and cries because something didn't turn out how you hoped.
some people don't have beds to sit in at all.
your problems seem big to you.
you say you're depressed, but do you know what that means?
you say you feel so terrible you could kill yourself, but do you know what that means?
you say nobody cares about you, but do you know what that means?
I was tagged by the amazing Rose Thorn from It's Looking a Bit Mitty to do the Text Tag! I'm sorry for the delay in doing this tag xx
Here are the guidelines of the tag:
+ Thank the person who nominated you/give a link back to their blog
+ Answer the original 6 text-themed questions
+ Add a typography/word related question of your own for those you tagged to answer
+ Tag 6+ bloggers and let them know
+ Include these rules in your post
Let's get into it!
What is your favourite letter of the alphabet?
Probably v, s, or a.
What are three words that you love?
NO I MUST PICK FIVE. I love the words fangirl, fierce, feminist, wanderlust, and always (tell me you understand).
What are three words that you hate?
I hate acne, emasculate, and moist.
If you were to create a word, what would it be, and what would it describe?
Tearen - which is to make someone else cry by crying. What are your three favourite punctuation marks?
!, ?, and # (if that counts).
What are three of your favourite fonts?
Libre Baskerville, Bebas Neue, and Rebel Heart.
I tag:
Anyone who wants to do this!
Rose Thorn's question:
What/who inspired you to start blogging? There wasn't any major push factor in my life; I just wanted a place to be myself and express my thoughts, so I started a blog.
My question: What are your five favorite slang words/abbreviations?
I'm going to answer this! I love Interwebs, Muggle, ship, goals, and SoML.
That was a short little tag I decided to do for you all - I hope you liked this post! Definitely do this tag :) xx
If you're from just about everywhere else in the US, where people of color are underrepresented, you'd be startled the first time you walked into my school.
My class, for example. Almost everyone is Asian or Hispanic, and we have one half-Caucasian kid. That's it. I've grown up in a community where the white race is a minority. California, by a wide margin, is definitely a state with high minority populations. Because of that, I'm lucky enough to lack experience with racism, as a person of color, firsthand.
It's true: segregation still does exist, but subtly. When I read an article about the advertisement for the beauty brand SheaMoisture, I discovered that one of the facts they'd presented was something I'd noticed before, but hadn't thought much of. Their products, which are meant for curly, natural hair, are located in a separate "ethnic" beauty section. That's segregation right there. Is "ethnic" less beautiful (of course not)? Why does it have to be located elsewhere? Natural hair is gorgeous, but the other moral of the story: beauty aisle segregation, though sneaky, isn't okay. There are so many other ways that the beauty world has demoted women of color (think back to when one critic said that Zendaya's Oscar hairstyle, dreads, looked like they "would smell like weed," even though she put the critic in her place and a Barbie doll was modeled after the look). Or even the time one social media troll told half-white, half-Indian singer Charli XCX her skin "looked dirty." Or the time a student, who usually wears her hair in braids, let her natural, curly hair out; her teacher said her hair was "poofy" and "unprofessional" and that "no one would hire her with hair like that."
Think about it: people of color are paid less than Caucasians. While it's primarily based off of education, there'll still be a wage gap between a person of color and a Caucasian with the same educational background. For every dollar a white man makes, a Asian woman will make 90 cents, a white woman will earn 78 cents, a Native American/Pacific Islander woman will be paid 65 cents, an African-American woman 64 cents, an American Indian/Alaska Native woman 59 cents, and a Latina/Hispanic woman 54 cents.
Something that's always nagged me, though not direct racism, is the assumption that America is black-and-white. There's more than two races - "person of color" doesn't translate to "African-American." I do recognize that our country's unfortunate history of racial discrimination mostly had to do with African-Americans, but that was then and this is now. A group of people is not diverse when African-Americans and Caucasians alone are included; it's when African-Americans, Asians, Hispanics, Caucasians, Native Americans, Alaska Natives, and Pacific Islanders are. Do the math: there's a significant difference between two races and six. Call me oversensitive, but that's something I felt the need to address.
The world isn't divided into good people and racists (did you get that Sirius reference?) Oh, I had to bring Harry Potter into this. The wizarding world's initial, derogatory perception of house-elves, along with the whole blood purity concept, is based on racism and slavery in our world. Even characters we know are amazing, amazing people - like Ron and Sirius - can sometimes show little respect for house-elves, and I think that was J.K. Rowling's way of pointing out that everybody can be racist sometimes. Don't dismiss racism by saying, "I'm not a racist, so why does it matter?" Great people say offensive things, too.
Hope you enjoyed that opinion post - if there's anything else you want to say, do!
Breakdown's a series I've created for all my opinion posts :)
I've been crazy obsessed with Tumblr surfing to scope out new Harry Potter theories (expect the next few posts to be HP-related) to fantasize over. Yes, over the last few days, I've had a change of heart; I actually freaking love Draco Malfoy now and YASSSS DRAMIONE. But before I launch into fangirl mode, let's get into 10 of my favorite Potterhead-created theories. (SPOILERS INCLUDED!) 1. Draco Malfoy warned Hermione about the Basilisk.
J.K. Rowling's been known to give out behind-the-scenes secrets about some of the characters to the film producers/cast; for example, Alan Rickman, who played Snape, knew his fate and that he loved Lily beforehand, so he could channel that into his acting. In the beginning of the Chamber of Secrets movie, in Flourish and Blotts (it wasn't depicted in the books, but then again, there's the paragraph above if you need a reminder), Malfoy was shown standing in the corner, making sure no one was looking, and then proceeding to tear a page out of a book. That's pretty strange. Why would he rip a page out of a book? His family wasn't poor, so he could afford to buy it. They didn't discourage learning or reading either, so there's no reason Draco wouldn't have the liberty to buy the book if he wanted to. Later, when Hermione is Petrified, she's shown holding a torn page in her hand. Again, questions. Hermione loves and cares for books, so why would she have ripped a page out of a book she could have just checked out? The theory is that Draco, in an attempt to warn Harry, Ron, and Hermione about the Basilisk, slipped the page into her bag, and that she was reading it right before she was Petrified. He was worried and concerned, but his inflated ego prevented him from showing it outright. There must be some significance to Draco being shown tearing the page out of the book in the movie. BUT. I was debating about the accuracy of this theory today (I thought it was true) with my friend, and while it makes sense for the most part, there's (admittedly) a little hitch. This was before the school year started, before the existence of the Chamber of Secrets was confirmed. Nobody knew what creature was living inside or that the Chamber was going to be opened that year. So how did Draco? 2. Snape had to teach the Slytherins to waltz. When Professor McGonagall announced the Yule Ball to the Gryffindors, she called on Ron to help her demonstrate a proper waltz. She's the Gryffindor Head of House, so this ultra-likely theory proposes that Snape had to teach the Slytherins to waltz. Urgh, this amazing theory has made my day ;) No, seriously. Can you imagine Snape dancing with one of the Slytherins? NO NO NO I CAN'T EVEN. WHAT IF IT WAS DRACO. That would be so awkward. 3. Neville wasn't terrible at magic; he was just equipped with the wrong wand. As we're constantly reminded during the series, the wand chooses the wizard. Neville mentioned that he used his father's wand; his father was a powerful, talented Auror, as was his mother. So what if Frank Longbottom's wand was just wrong for Neville, who struggled with simple spells and couldn't even Disarm someone until his fifth year? During the Battle of the Department of Mysteries, Dolohov breaks Neville's wand. Because of that, Neville had to get a new wand; from that point on, he was actually a fairly good wizard. He held his own during the Battle of Hogwarts, and was the one who eventually slayed Nagini. Maybe he had it in him all along, but his wand was just hindering his potential. 4. Dumbledore's death was predicted. Occasionally, Trelawney's not a total nutcase with her superstitions. As she'd like to make clear, at a table of 13, the first to rise is the first to die. In the third book, at the Christmas feast, there do happen to be 13 people at the table. Well, 12, but then again, Ron had Scabbers in his pocket (who was Peter Pettigrew), so when you count him, it was 13. Dumbledore gets up out of his seat before anyone else to greet Trelawney, and yes, he was the first to die of the people at the table. This superstition also held true for the deaths of Sirius and Lupin. 5. Sirius and Harry are blood-related. Sirius says in passing to Harry that all the pure-blood families are inter-related, because there are few options when it comes to pure-blood wizards or witches to marry. And if you dig deep into wizarding genealogy, Charlus Potter, James Potter's grandfather (who is also an ancestor of Crabbe and Millicent Bulstrode) married Dorea Black (notice the last name). That makes her Harry Potter's great-grandmother. So that means Harry, who is half-blood, has a paternal blood connection to the pure-blood Sirius. Harry and Ginny may have been third cousins before getting married, too, and other relatives of Harry's include Tonks, the Malfoys, the Longbottoms, the other Weasleys, and the Lestranges. Oh, and Voldemort and Harry were both descended from the Peverells and had that pure-blood connection. WHAT IS THIS. 6. Crookshanks was initially Harry's cat. As revealed in the letter from Lily to Sirius Harry finds in the last book, the Potter family had a cat. So what happened to the cat after Lily and James died? Hermione says to Ron and Harry that the clerk at Magical Menagerie, from where she purhcased Crookshanks, had said that the cat had been there for a long time and that no one had wanted her. That fits in to the theory, which states that maybe Crookshanks was the Potters' cat. Sirius was obviously very close to the Potters, so he'd probably have been friendly with the cat. He mentions in the third book that he was somewhat able to communicate with Crookshanks, and if she wasn't the Potters' cat, how would that have been? It's strange for even an Animagus to feel as though they could interact with animals. And Crookshanks' familiarity with Scabbers (or Peter Pettigrew) also indicated that she could have had a previous connection with Harry. 7. The Dursleys' presents to Harry represent the Deathly Hallows. The three gifts the Dursleys give to Harry: in his first year, a fifty-pence piece (which represents the Resurrection Stone). In his second, a toothpick (which represents the Elder Wand). In his third year, a single tissue (which represents the Invisibility Cloak). J.K. Rowling, you genius! 8. Malfoy is a werewolf. In the Half-Blood Prince, Harry, while spying on Draco, sees him in Borgin and Burkes blackmailing Borgin into doing his bidding. Malfoy does so by showing Borgin something on his arm, which Harry originally believed to be the Dark Mark. This suspicion is never confirmed in the series, however, and Draco was probably never an offical Death Eater. This was before school started, so there's no reason Voldemort would have branded his arm at that point before Draco even proved himself by assassinating Dumbledore. As we know, Voldemort wasn't exactly trusting, so why would he have given Draco the Death Eater treatment before he was deemed worthy? The theory is that what Draco showed Borgin on his arm wasn't the Dark Mark. It was a werewolf bite. Draco was stressed all throughout the sixth book - often trotting off to be in private and cry about his problems. It's supposedly because of Voldemort's task for him, but could it be because he was a werewolf? Also, when Harry tried tracking Draco down on the Marauders' Map, there were certain periods of time where he wasn't visible. Maybe he'd run off to the Shrieking Shack or elsewhere when he was turning into a werewolf, but if not, he'd probably just been taking his Wolfsbane potion. Besides, Fenrir Greyback, the character who does the biting, was introduced as a werewolf who, as a punishment for people who in his eyes had done wrong, bit their children. Since Lucius had mishandled the diary Horcrux, resulting in its destruction (and failed to retrieve the prophecy), maybe that was Greyback's punishment: biting Draco. And when Tonks and Lupin (who is part-werewolf) have a baby, Voldemort specifically says to Draco, "Maybe you can babysit the cubs" with a chuckle. J.K. Rowling even said that in the third movie, something happened that foreshadowed something she knew was coming. In that same movie, Draco impersonated a werewolf by doing a wolf howl. This sounds far-fetched, but there's pretty strong evidence. Draco Malfoy, the amazing bouncing ... werewolf? 9. The Dursleys hated Harry because of the Horcrux inside of him. Remember how Ron abandoned Harry in the seventh book after a few minutes' exposure to the locket Horcrux? That's not a very Ron thing to do, since he's always been loyal, but the dark forces within the Horcrux tampered with his thoughts and amplified his emotions 100%. It's not just wearing the Horcrux that changed him - it was being near it. The Dursleys brought up Harry for 10 years, and Harry was a Horcrux. So, basically, the theory dictates that maybe the Dursleys were really amazing people, like Ron. They just turned on Harry under 10 years' influence of the Horcrux, and that caused them to be bitter and resenting and terrible towards him. It makes sense, but remember - even before the Dursleys were in custody of Harry, they hated wizardkind. Petunia hated Lily and Snape out of jealousy for them being magical, and she and Vernon generally didn't think highly of witches and wizards. The presented, most prominent reason the Dursleys hated Harry was because he was a wizard. And besides, Ron, Hermione, and Harry's other friends were fine around him, and his being a Horcrux never repelled them from him. What gives? 10. J.K. Rowling is really Rita Skeeter. This one's my favorite.
The theory goes: After the wizarding world found out that most of Rita's work was fabricated and exaggerated, she was banished and had to live as a Muggle. Since she wasn't a witch anymore, she wouldn't have to mind the Statute of Secrecy - so she wrote the true course of events as the Harry Potter series, hoping she would expose magic to Muggles. Most Muggles, except for us lucky individuals, thought it was just fiction, but that was okay for her, since she lived a life as J.K. Rowling - rich and famous. Besides, no one could have enough imagination to write something as brilliant as the series, so there must be some truth to it. They're both blondes, anyway. Unfortunately, in some ways, this isn't possible. How could Rita Skeeter have seen Harry's dreams and been able to describe them, and if she was banished, how would she know what happened during the epilogue? I'm sure Rita wasn't a Legilimens who invaded Harry's mind during his sleep, and there are multiple other scenes she simply couldn't have witnessed. I'm going to have to debunk it, so sorry, guys. I hope you enjoyed reading this post and much as I did writing it! I'll probably be coming back with more theories in the future, so look out for that as well as other Harry Potter-related posts xx
Lo and behold: 22 things you didn't know about me.
1. Yeah, I don't scream on roller coasters. My natural instinct is to make weird facial expressions, so even though it might seem like I'm not scared during a ride, when the pictures come out, it's evident.
2. I had a weird obsession with roly-polys in second grade. Don't ask me why.
3. My favorite musical artist is Alessia Cara. From her music, I've grown to love R&B, and her quirky songwriting style is amazing. She has her fair share of both songs about love and songs about everything else in life.
4. I love EDM.
5. My favorite TV show is definitely Pretty Little Liars. I'm still on Season Two tho ;) My favorite character is probably either Hanna or Spencer. But I love Toby. And Caleb.
6. I'm obsessed with washi tape.
7. My favorite quote is, "Though she be but little, she is fierce," but of course, I love "Always."
8. A run-down of my 5 favorite song lyrics: The rest of the world was black and white, but we were in screaming color Taylor Swift You don't have to change a thing, the world could change its heart Alessia Cara 'Cause baby I could build a castle out of all the bricks they threw at me Taylor Swift It's our paradise and it's our war zone Zayn Malik But you gotta realize that soon the fog will clear up Shawn Mendes
9. I LOVE FOREVER 21.
10. Favorite book ships: Romione and Fremione. And Harriet + Nick from one of my favorite book series, Geek Girl, though I don't know if they have a ship name.
11. Favorite TV ships: Spoby and Haleb.
12. A book I'd have to recommend: the entire Geek Girl series by Holly Smale. It's incredibly funny, witty, and the characters are amazing. It's something of a hidden gem, but do read it :)\
13. Latest author obsessions: J.K. Rowling (After all this time? Always), Holly Smale, and Jenny Han (read To All the Boys I've Loved Before and P.S. I Still Love You; they're awesome!)
14. Favorite fitness YouTuber: Blogilates! She definitely fostered my love for Pilates.
15. I have abnormal strength when it comes to passing basketballs fast and hard. Gee, I love basketball.
16. I was once chased by a buffalo. Well, it might have been a bull, or a bison, or a cow. Some big animal.
17. I took a picture with both a llama and an alpaca.
18. I love DIYing. If you can count watching DIY room decor YouTube videos as that.
19. I'm a hopeless romantic xx
20. I have loads of favorite foods. There's a local Indian restaurant whose fried rice is to die for, and the same goes for another nearby Chinese restaurant. Just like anybody else, I love Hot Cheetos, but I also adore Oreos, caramel anything, white chocolate (especially in cookie form with some macadamia nuts), oranges, plums, nectarines, and more.
21. I'm a Francophile, and I have several favorite French phrases, like "c'est la vie," "crème de la crème," and "la ville de l'amour." 22. I'm a Gryffindor. Well there we go!
