Inside Kimmy's Mind

Fruit by Brian Francis

I bought this book at Kaboom, one of the best used book stores in Houston. I fell in love with the place, and their prices are fantastic. I enjoy Half Price, but Kaboom has them beat. It’s own by the greatest couple too, they hold readings in the back of the store and it’s just a really nice place. I mentioned it in this post awhile back but deleted the pictures because I went with the ex. I just never got around to adding different pictures to that post so I’ll do that here as well. But first, back to the main reason of this entry. A book review. Now I’ve discussed books that I’ve read before but you can’t really call them reviews. You would think after 3 semesters of creative writing and I would be able to write an awesome book review. Well it’s my opinion about it so here it goes. I purchased a review copy, so I’m not sure how much of the story was changed in  the actual published version. But I absolutely loved this book. Both as a reader and as someone who enjoys writing. As I’ve developed my writing skills, I’ve discovered that I enjoy writing coming of age stories. So when I read a book that has taken something we have all gone through and made it relatable while at the same time different, I can’t help but swoon.And that is exactly what this book did for me.

Synopsis (found on the back of the book)

Thirteen-year-old Peter Paddington is overweight, the subject of his classmates’ ridicule, and the victim of too many bad movie-of-the-week storylines. When his nipples begin speaking to him one day and inform him of their diabolical plan to expose his secret desires, Peter finds himself cornered in a world that seems to have no tolerance for difference. Peter’s only solace is “The Bedtime Movies”- perfect-world fantasies that lull him to sleep every night. But when the lines between Peter’s fantasy world and his reality begin to blur, his hilarious adventures in overeating, family dysfunction, and the terrifying world of sexual awakening really begin. 

After reading that I just had to buy it. I love the style that Francis wrote this book in. It’s in first person from the POV of Peter. Although it is relatable, everyone experiences adolescence in their own way. This story was entertaining and it definitely made me think a lot about my own experiences, that awkward stage in life. While reading this book I laughed a lot…and out loud. I feel as though I should actually get my hands on a published copy so I can compare the two. Another thing I found interesting was the fact that it was about a boy and not a girl. As a female, the male mind is somewhat out of bounds so reading this from the perspective of a thirteen year old boy was another reason I enjoyed it. After reading this book, it made me want to start working on some short stories. I might share a few that were inspired by this book.

So if you are looking for a fun book to read I highly recommend Fruit. What style of books do you find yourself drawn to? And if you have book suggestions, let me know. 😀 Thanks for reading.

Concentrating is difficult when there are a bunch of things I’d rather being doing.

This semester is the first time I’ve had such an overload of crap to get done. Here is my current list of stuff to get done.

Nonfiction:

• 2 Peer critiques- due 4-30-12
• Paper 2 revised-due 5-2-12

Shakespeare:

• 10 pg paper- due 5-2-12
• Test (in class)- 4-30-12
• Test (take home)-5-7-12

Fiction:

• Portfolio- due on 5-1-12
• Reflective 4 pg Essay (included in portfolio)

Math:

• Final- 5-10-12

-.- I’m tired just thinking about all the things I have to do. I just can’t wait for this semester to be done. I want to enjoy the month I have off before I start classes over the summer. :/ That’s right…more school. I go home every summer and take a few classes at the community college in my home town. It’s cheaper and my parents enjoy having me home. Of course this is the first time I actually have a bigger reason to want to stay in Houston. Sadly, staying isn’t an option. But hey that is when technology comes in and helps make things easier.

Anyway, I jut finished putting my portfolio together and now I am working on my reflective essay. And then once that is done I can start writing my Shakespeare essay, I’m thinking five pages tonight and five tomorrow, but I also have a Shakespeare test to study for. I’m freaking out about that. The plays I should be re reading are….

• Henry The Fourth
• Macbeth
• Antony and Cleopatra
• Coriolanus

And then my 10 pg essay has to be over a specific act out of all of the plays we’ve read this semester. >o< And then of course there is the take home test that is due on the 7th and that i essentially an essay in itself. My professor is a horrible person!!! There are so many things I’d rather be doing, like figuring out what to get my sister for her birthday. She is turning 19 this year.

I just needed a break from writing. Yeah and I decided to blog as a break? I dunno, I’m weird that way. Once finals are over I’ll post more exciting things along with cute make-you-sick date pictures. I’m happy. XD

Do you follow a study schedule when finals roll around? Or do you just wing it and somehow make it out unscathed?

If you love to write then you should  totally sign up for this conference. There will be craft talks and workshops where you have a piece of your writing critique by fellow writers. Choose from poetry, fiction or non-fiction writing.

I plan on signing up as well, I’m so excited. It will be held on the UH campus and anyone 18 and older can join…unless you are currently in a grad program. :/ All the information can be found HERE. If you register before Sunday it only costs $75 after that it will be 100. That will only cover food and registration not room and board. They will have rooms available so if you are interested in staying on campus for the week that option is available.Now this is pretty cheap compared to some writing conferences so I can’t stress how amazing this opportunity is…especially if you live in Texas. If you do consider coming then leave me a comment so we can get acquainted I would love to meet you and read your writing.

So I had a great Spring Break, I just wish it was longer.

So I went to New Orleans, it was my first time out of Texas and it was so much fun. I got to meet the rest of Jody’s family and visit a different state. I got to ride a ferry walk around the French Quarter. Not to mention eat some delicious food. Went to a craw fish boil at Jody’s brothers house. And then had beignets at Cafe De Monde, I have a lot of video footage to sort through so I’ll end up putting it in a vlog sooner or later. We stayed at with Jody’s dad. His house was so pretty. They had the most comfortable carpet I have ever felt in my life. I always feel strange when I stay at someone elses house. Technically I have two homes since moving in with Mija and Jody. Both feel like home for me, just in different ways. The New Orleans air didn’t like my hair. And I thought Texas hated it the most, but nope. The first day it was ok because it was nice and cool but extremely windy. I was all about comfort on this trip.  Oh yeah walked down Bourbon street, yup saw a bunch of nudie pics. But before that we saw one of the most beautiful churches I have ever seen- St. Louie Cathedral. Is that an oxymoron? Or is it irony? XD Well it doesn’t matter, it was so beautiful. The whole trip was just fantastic. It was a nice getaway. Minus the fact I brought home a cold as a souvenir. But now I know why people travel. A change of scenery, that’s probably why people run away from their problems. I didn’t think about any home work assignments that entire weekend. It was nice to come back home and then have an entire week to just catch up on dreaming….even though I should have done  homework. :/ I just didn’t want to do anything, but I did go to the rodeo. But I’ll talk about that in a later post. I actually have a lot to talk about, but have to finish this post first. >.<

I’m so unorganized, I let too much time pass and then other things happen that I want to share but I can’t put them all in one post.  That would be even more messy. How do you keep your blog post organized? Or do you just type whatever whenever?

So this weekend the weirdos and I are heading to New Orleans.

Jody has invited us to go and visit his family. I’m excited, I’ve never been outside of Texas before. I haven’t even traveled explored the rest of Texas. I’ve been to Austin, Corpus Christi, San Antonio, Mission, McAllen, and a few other small towns. But I haven’t been anywhere really, my family and I never really went on vacations.  I’m finally packed, I think I have everything I need. I’m not bringing my lappy because where we’re staying won’t have wifi, plus my laptop should be traveling.   But before I go, I wanted to share a funny story with you. I don’t want to gross anyone out so if talking about feminine products disgusts you then stop reading now. Ok so I carry extra pads with me for those just in case moments. Because we all know that mother nature loves to screw with us. Well anyway, I had put on in the zipper compartment of my bag. Its one of those Always thin pads, anyway so I kept it unzipped because I had kept my cell in that compartment. Well I head in to the bathroom and start checking my bag and its vanished. I must have dropped it somewhere on campus, of course you would think that I would have noticed but obviously not. This moment made me think of another time this has happened to me. I can laugh about it now, but the 11 yr old me would cringe to think I’m sharing this story with other people. So when I was 11, according to biology or science, I had become a woman. I, the same as now, carried extra pads with me. Only I carried like five extra pads with me. A bit much but hey I didn’t know how many to carry with me.  Well I must have forgotten to zip the front pocket of my backpack because all of these pads had fallen out all over the assembly area.  Luckily there were only a few people, all of them girls and all of them “friends”, and they started making fun of me. Now these pads weren’t diapers. They were tiny pads, I was 11 for goodness sake. I can laugh at it now, but at the time I was really embarrassed. So I just ran off. The next morning I get to school and notice the pads I had left were being kicked around by some boys. Most of my peers avoided them but one boy had picked one up to throw away ,holding it between his index and thumb as if it were used. I was mortified because it was all anyone had talked about all day. About the pads that littered the assembly area. Now that I’m an adult I can laugh but I can imagine the current 22 yr me dropping a pad in front of someone but they were probably too embarrassed to say, “Hey you dropped your pad.” XD

Just one of those moments that might have been a bit embarrassing but since I was so unobservant it didn’t phase me. 😀

So have you been to New Orleans? If so what are some places I should check out?

First off. I want to thank the readers who followed me on bloglovin. If that’s you, then leave your name in the comments so I can follow you back. I probably already have, but just in case let me know. Or if you have a different site you would like me to subscribe to let me know also.

So we went to the zoo on Saturday. Jody and Mija have memberships and they let Kat and me tag along. 😀 We walked to the train and I personally like the light rail so much more than the bus It’s faster and has more seating. If only the rails were all over Houston then public transportation would be a lot more fun.  We were on a time crunch so we had to wake up early. But we managed to see everything I wanted to. Elephants, peacocks, orangutans and the red panda are all the animals I was hoping to see.  As you can see from my gif playing in the sidebar, the red panda was one of my favorite animals I saw this weekend. So adorable. The mommy and baby orangutans were just so cute. The mom was named Cheyenne  and she is a surrogate mother to abandon babies. Her newest baby is Aurora. She had the cutest case of bed hair. When we first went around to their exhibit we couldn’t see them. They were laying down behind the pillars. The playground was decorated for Aurora’s first birthday. They had birthday presents all over  the place, Cheyenne took it as her duty to open and consume whatever was in the box. There was also this hilarious lemur who kept spreading his arms upwards. Too funny. Once I saw him I couldn’t help but sing, I like to move it move it. It was the same type of lemur that sings that song in the movie Madagascar.

After we left the zoo we walked back to the train and took it to Les Girvals for the best bahn mi sandwiches ever. Ok, so I haven’t really tried any other places. But these sandwiches are so freaking yummy and I feel like it just can’t any better than this. The BBQ is marinated in this amazing sauce plus the sandwiches are only 2.50 so whenever I have money I head over there and treat myself. Especially since now I know how to get there from my house. I did try the place on campus but it was horrible. There was this horrible hummus spread on in instead of the yummy sauce that makes the sandwich great. This is also probably the reason I don’t try any other restaurants.

So do you have a restaurant that you prefer?

Happy (late) Valentine’s Day!!! Or if you feel as though this is a ridiculous holiday then I hope you had a  Happy regular Tuesday. 😀

So I feel as though this holiday should be for everyone. Why must it only be for the people in romantic relationships? I love people too. Plus I think couples, mainly women, put way too much pressure on this holiday. I mean relax, just because your significant other forgot to buy you flowers or chocolate don’t attack him. Wouldn’t you rather have him do sweet things for you just because he wanted to and not because a holiday says he’s a bad boyfriend if he doesn’t? I mean if I was in a relationship, I would be happy with just seeing that person. Thankfully though I’m not and I can just relax.I mean I’ve only been in a relationship once during Valentine’s Day and he made me a card and spent the day with me. And that for me is a perfect day. So this year I decided to dress up for Valentine’s. I even painted hearts on my nails,  I went all out. I thought, why not? Might as well have some fun, and I actually enjoyed it too. I don’t usually wear red so when I found that this red blouse in my closet I just said hey cool. And then I just added the bow tie I made for Halloween. I think it ties the outfit together, I plan on make some more bows in different colors. So I got out of class early and visited Mija at her office. After she finished with work, Jody took us out to dinner for some Banh mi. :9 Great dinner.  Oh but I did get a Valentine from my mom. She bought me a frog plushie holding a heart picture frame, which she filled with a picture of her and my dad. Its one of my favorite pictures of them. I love my mom, she is just so cute. :smile:I had plan to make some Valentine cookies but I got home way too late and just lost interest. -.-

Well anyway that was my Valentine’s, I hope yours was just as nice and hope the rest of your week is just as nice. <3<3

So I mentioned in my last blog about a possible giveaway. I’ll make a vlog showcasing the clutch I made that will be up for grabs. If enough people participate I might give two away. I’ll try to get that going this weekend or maybe sometime next week.

I bought new fabric this weekend. I bought a pretty paper umbrella fabric and this cute sewing themed one. Kat chose those two. And then I noticed the robot one in the clearance section and just had to get it. >.< And then my mom showed me this nice Star Wars fabric. XD I lost it. I HAD to buy it. Lets just say I went a tad bit over board, but I can’t help it. Once I enter that store I’m instantly drawn to all the pretty fabric and just start piling it into my cart. And can you blame me? It doesn’t help with all the signs that say 30% and 40% off. Plus the coupons?! O.o The coupons!!!! But I did drive all the way to Jo Ann’s fabrics. Now that is a pretty big step for me. I hate driving in Houston anxiety. Its scary and I hate doing it. But at the same time I want to learn. I drove again on Sunday, and while Mija and mom ran errands Kat and I stayed in the car and took a bunch of pictures. XD We do this a lot. She is my unofficial photographer. That’s the best thing about sisters. You can just be yourself around them. Well that’s true for siblings in general. Its also interesting because they know you for you’re entire life and they see the transformation you go through as you age. Weird. lol So Mija finally managed to get the Toki Doki Cactus Girl phone strap for me. I can’t believe after weeks of buying these foil covered trinkets, she was able to get it. Talk about luck. I mentioned this a few posts back…on how I got a milk strap. Now all that is left is to get the Pink Cactus Girl for Kat. I put it on my cell, I’m still amazed by this. I mean at first the game was fun, but after awhile the element of surprise becomes very frustrating. They should just have clear boxes so we know which ones we are buying and we can buy the ones we want. Not that I don’t like my milk strap, because I do, but it would make getting the other ones much easier. -.- I know just a stupid keychain. But its a sister thing. I can’t help it. Plus how freaking cute is Toki Doki? Extremely. I have an extra phone strap that I might include as a separate giveaway. But only if I do one clutch. This will be my first giveaway, and if it goes well I’ll continue to do one every other month or so.  If not then maybe the next handmade creation will grab your attention.

Question!!!! Do you have any siblings? Or are you an only child?

My sister Mija tagged me!

Rules:

• You must post these rules.
• Each person must post 11 things about themselves in their journal.
• Answer the questions the tagger set for you in their post, and create eleven new questions for the people you tag to answer.
• You have to choose people to tag and link them on the post.

11 Facts about me….

1. I do NOT like my neck being touched. >.<
2. I taught myself how to knit and sew. ^^
3. Nail polish is a new obsession of mine.
4. I’m horribly unphotogenic…sucks -.-
5. Teal is my new favorite color.
6. I am a middle child.
7. I’ve never eaten, nor do I ever want to, at Taco Bell.
8. I’m an Editorial Assistant for Gulf Coast. <3
9. Optometrist scare me.
10. I can’t dance to save my life.
11. The internet is something I can’t live without.

Questions!!!

1. Who was your childhood hero?   My dad. I was a huge daddy’s girl as a child. Now that I’m grown up and out of the house. He picks on me like a little brother would. :/ He is crazy.

2. What is your biggest pet peeve? Sorry, but I can’t stand it when women wear leggings/tights without wearing something that covers their butt. If you bend down or reach up and I can see your underwear then that means you should wear some shorts or cute bloomers to cover up. Thank you.

3. Favorite thing about grade school? It was so easy to make friends. It was the time before clicks formed and everyone was friends with everyone. Before the jocks became jocks and the geeks became geeks. It was nice. 🙂

4. What is your ultimate guilty pleasure?  I wouldn’t say its my ultimate guilty pleasure, but I enjoy Vampire Diaries. I’ve never read the books, nor do I plan to, but for some reason I just got sucked in by the series. >.< The story line isn’t that great, but I enjoy watching it.

5. Favorite item to accessorize with? It would have to say scarves. After learning how to knit them, I’ve become obsessed. XD But then again I’m crazy about bags and hair accessories as well. So this is actually a very hard question to answer.

6. Do you have any hobbies? Yes I do. Blogging, reading, knitting, sewing. Sometimes I vlog and just writing in general. :3

7. Favorite tasty beverage? Raspberry lemonade. Sooooo freaking yummy. :9 I first tried it at FireHouse Subs. And instantly feel in love with it. And its all thanks to this fancy coke machine.

8. How did you come up with the design of your blog? I just asked my talented sister to design and make one for me. I asked her to design something that would fit my personality and feature my hobbies. And the finish product is just splendid. So thanks again Mjia!! <3

9. Do you go to any cons or meet ups? I’ve been to a few cons, now I’m more focused on going to readings in my area. The one I’m excited for most is The Houston Indie Book Fest. So if your in the area, you should come check it out and look for the Gulf Coast table. That’s where I’ll be. >.<

10. What are you going/did go to school for? I’m an English Major with a Concentration in Creative Writing at UH. And I hope to work for a Journal or a Magazine or a nice publishing company.

11. Tell me your best childhood memory! I have so many good ones. But the one that springs to mind, I wouldn’t exactly call this the best, is when I would tell my mom that a bird landed on my finger while I was playing outside. XD Not sure why I would do this. But it just seemed so amazing, I must have associated birds with Disney Princesses and felt that a bird landing on my finger was pure magic.

My Questions for you!!! :3

1. If you could meet any celebrity or other personality in the world, dead or alive, who would it be and why?
2. Which color best describes you or stands for your personality?
3. How did you come up with your blog url? Or if you don’t have your own domain, where did the name of your blog come from?
4.Describe yourself in a single sentence.
5. Favorite cartoon character?
6.Pc or Mac?
7. iphone or Droid? Or if you don’t have a smart phone, why not?
8. Favorite movie?
9. Why do you blog?
10. What projects have you been working on? (i.e. personal, creative, homework)
11. What is the best thing about your blog design?

I tag Kristen, Melanie, Bea, Sarah, Audry, Robin and Shelly. After you update your blog with this meme leave a link to it on my post. Others are welcomed to it as well.

Firstly, I just want to take the time and thank my fellow bloggers for reading and commenting on my blog. I really appreciate every comment. 😀

And I’ve found some fascinating new blogs to read as well. So win win! So its always good to add your blog url when commenting.  I feel as though there aren’t enough bloggers in the world. And I have yet to meet someone in person who openly confesses to blogging. I mean why wouldn’t you want to blog? I enjoy it. Once I meet someone new, I admit to blogging right off the bat in hopes they share the same pastime.  Sadly, they just look at me and nod. A lot of non-bloggers, see the act of blogging as just another spotlight the attention whores crave. But if you think about it, even the non-bloggers sort of blog in some way. Facebook and twitter is micro blogging is it not? They take the time to type out a sentence or two that documents the day and display it for the world to see. They assume the world cares what they have to say. Yet they mock us, who create more than a few sentences? Hypocritical if you ask me. I think all the dedicated bloggers are hidden away somewhere. But I’m happy to have found such an accepting community with like minded people. So again, I thank you. 😀

So onto daily outfit. This is what I wore on Monday and I actually really love this outfit. I’ve mention before that I don’t always feel pretty. So when I do, I like to take a bunch of pictures to prove that I can. This is another new combination of layers that I’m proud of. Everything matches so well. I’m a bit of a match freak thanks to my sister Mija but I’m not complaining. It was programed in me when I was little so I can’t actually help it. XD The green dress was actually a bit longer but I shortened it because the length was a bit awkward. This is actually shorter than a dress, so I’m wearing some shorts underneath. I even do so when the dress is actually long enough. Layers are actually a security blanket for me. The more layers the better. The tights I’m wearing are actually my favorite. I bought them a year or two ago at Target. I’m really loving this mint green, its featured in the cardigan, the tights, the purse (also from Target a few years back) and even my nail polish. I knitted an olive green bow for my hair, I’m in love with making hair accessories. And bows are just so fun to use/make. 😀 My hair is in a bun, I used a sock to create the perfect bun. Of course in person its a massive bun. I have a ton of hair and its hard to get my hair to cooperate with the me but I managed to get it to work. It takes some practice to get the sock bun down and I’m getting there. My younger sister, Kat discovered the sock bun and showed me how to do it. I’m still surprised I managed to do it.

So I packed some rice balls for lunch the other day. They made for a great picture, but they weren’t exactly very filling. So I think I’ll stick with my sandwiches for now. But I did have fun adding faces to the picture. Look how cute? I wish I could pack a cute bento, but my culinary skills are nonexistent. So I wouldn’t be able to be put something as beautiful and yummy together like some can. Besides, I have to keep in mind what will keep throughout the day. I carry my bento with me around campus, there is no locker or fridge to hold my personal items. I’m not Sailor Moon, I don’t have an invisible pocket that holds the moon scepter. So I have to make sure it won’t go bad or make my bag smell horrible. So tuna or mayonnaise product is out of the question. Its just good ole’ Pb&J for me. Of course, I like to cut my sandwiches into butterflies or hearts. It reminds me of my mom. >.< And it makes it brings a smile to my face when I go to eat my heart shaped sandwich.

Well it appears that I have stayed up way past my bed time. Blast! I should really get to sleep. I have a late day tomorrow. :/

I’ll end the post with this, do you have any other ideas of what I could pack for lunch? Something easy? lol