General Life Update

obligatory picture of Eli <3 td="">

I've pretty much resigned myself to being sub-par about blog updates these days. Oh well. The traffic here has decreased a lot and I'm actually kind of glad for it. I don't feel as obligated to post all the time and come up with "quality blog content." I've moved on to more important things honestly.

But anyways, if you are here reading this, then awesome, thanks for sticking around so long.

Things have been going pretty well. I am signed up for my last two classes and by mid-August I will be finished and have my bachelor's degree in English literature with a minor in history. How exciting. Mostly I'm just glad to be getting it done with so I can start putting it on resumes. A lot more companies will look at me more seriously when I apply for writing jobs.

I've also been on my bipolar medication for just over two months now and I can definitely say it is having a positive effect on my life. My ups and downs are not quite as extreme and I've had very few days of crippling depression & apathy, which is a nice change. I still struggle with my anxiety but I'm working on it. I have been better this year so far than I was last year, mostly because I can feel myself moving forward, even if it's just by inches at a time. Being surrounded by people who support me and know how to give me just the right kind of push helps a lot. I'm so lucky to have the few loving family members and friends that I do, who know how to be gentle with me and when they should kick me in the butt. It's a difficult skill to have when it comes to me as I always tend to be oversensitive about things.

And on top of all this, I have at least two exciting events to look forward to in the coming months! Sue, her brother, and I are all going to Warped Tour on July 13 in Connecticut. I love Warped Tour and I didn't get a chance to go last year so I'm super excited, especially since Less Than Jake and Cute is What We Aim For are going to be there.

The most exciting news so far though is that Sue and I are going to Howlercon!

It's a Teen Wolf convention that is actually being held out here on the east coast! It's in New Jersey in November and Sue bought us the tickets yesterday. We got an awesome package that gives us free access to everything, preferred seating at the panels, and autographs from all the cast members, as well as t-shirts, wrist bands, and buttons. I've never been to a con before and I'm so happy that my first one will be for Teen Wolf! We still have to book our hotel room and buy train tickets, but both seem to be crazy cheap, which is good seeing as the tickets were kind of pricey. But so far both Holland Roden and Melissa Ponzio have agreed to go and I can't wait to see who else jumps on over the next few months.

And now I'm off to clean up my house a bit and probably do some reading for class. Sue just left after a week hanging out with me at my place and I'm at a loss with the sudden quiet and time alone. I might as well be productive.

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Freshly Shaved

Sue shaved my sides again for me while I was over so they're not shaggy looking anymore and I'm so happy. I love having shaved bits of hair, it just makes styling it more fun and more interesting, especially since I'm too lazy to do much beyond ponytails and clipping it. I do need to trim my bangs though.

bonus picture, this is what I am wearing most days:

Sue got me that plaid shirt awhile back and it's one of my favourite things to wear. So comfy and just the right weight for this time of year. And I'm just wearing it with leggings because I'm not a big fan of real pants, especially when I'm just hanging out at home.

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Currently

I'm trying so hard to update this space more and it's kind of working. I've spent most of the last week with the lovely Sue who just celebrated her 24th birthday. We've mostly just been hanging out, writing, watching some tv shows, and drinking wine. We did, however, volunteer at the library to help set up and run a book sale, which was fun.

Writing in the library.

Other than that, currently I have been...

Watching: Penny Dreadful, which is so good and I can't wait for the next episode; Orphan Black, which I just finished season 1 of last night and I am definitely hooked; and I finally got to see Vampire Academy which I loved. I'me a huge fan of the books and I was extremely pleased with the movie adaptation.

Reading: I finished the Graceling Realm series recently and I've also been rereading The Dream Thieves because it's one of my favourite books. I just got Etiquette & Espionage from the library which is next on my reading list.

Listening to: Lots of upbeat music -M.I.A., Nicki Minaj, Little Mix, Marina & the Diamonds, Save Ferris, Maroon 5, Rizzle Kicks, etc.

Wearing: It's warmed up a lot here so I've mostly just been wearing shorts and lightweight t-shirts or tank tops. I've been going barefoot as much as possible or just throwing on flip flops. I love summer because I can get away with wearing no shoes or sweaters. It's great.

Doing: Writing a lot. I've also baked a lot recently, which I love doing but haven't really in awhile. I also taught myself how to make gifs in photoshop so I've spent a lot of time doing that, just because I can.

I also will be signing up for summer classes next week so that I can finish my degree. I had to wait for my petition to count Women's Lit as a literary movement class to go through and it finally did. So I will be taking Women's Lit and hopefully another history course and when I'm done I can officially say I have a B.A. in English Lit. Hurrah!

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Happy birthday to my best friend!

That's right, today is my best friend in the whole world's 24th birthday! Sue and I have known each other since we were both 12 years old and we've been best friends ever since. She has been my sister, my inspiration, my rock. She has helped keep me going, given me a shoulder to cry on, encouraged me, laughed with me, and made some stupid decisions with me. I don't know where I'd be without her because she had made my life infinitely better by being in it.

So you guys should hop over to her blog and give her some love. And maybe check out her shop because she makes truly beautiful jewelry.

I love you darling!

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Book Recommendations Part 6

I think it's about time for some more book recommendations, don't you? Because as you all know, I love to read and I love sharing my favourites with others so that we can all suffer together at the hands of a stack of paper. I mean, because I want you all to have a pleasant reading experience. Yeah, that one.

So here are two more YA lit books, both at the beginnings of series, that I think some of you might enjoy.

Cinder by Marissa Meyer

This book is the first in The Lunar Chronicles and is probably some of the best re-invented fairytale lit I have ever read. I'd heard a lot about this series long before I picked up Cinder and I had been keeping it in the back of my head. Finally, a few months ago, I decided to give it a go and I was sucked in immediately. Meyer's world-building is superb and her characters are interesting and exciting.

Summary: Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl. Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future. (via goodreads)

Graceling by Kristin Cashore

Graceling is the first in the Graceling Realm books, which is a YA fantasy series. This is another great example of excellent world building and truly fantastic characters. I got really into the story and incredibly attached to the main character, Katsa, as well as Po. I actually just finished the last book in this series a week or so ago and was so upset when it was over. It's one o those worlds I wish I could stay in longer.

Summary: Katsa has been able to kill a man with her bare hands since she was eight - she's a Graceling, one of the rare people in her land born with an extreme skill. As niece of the king, she should be able to live a life of privilege, but Graced as she is with killing, she is forced to work as the king's thug. When she first meets Prince Po, Graced with combat skills, Katsa has no hint of how her life is about to change. She never expects to become Po's friend. She never expects to learn a new truth about her own Grace - or about a terrible secret that lies hidden far away. (via goodreads)

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Shop Update

I listed a pretty new pair of earrings in the shop!

enna. evil eye & pentacle charm earrings.

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Wednesday Words

I forgot to share words last week, which was silly because I actually have been writing a decent amount. Not as much as I would like to be (I ought to give myself a daily word count minimum) but I have put words to paper! Or, err, to a word document on my computer.

from The Night Coven...

Every time I'd been to Dorian's before the house had been quiet -a large peaceful sanctuary filled with soft light and the smell of incense and baked goods. 

It was nothing like that now. With his mothers gone it was loud and Dorian had strobe lights that flashed through the windows like lightning. The music wasn't anything I had ever heard before. Piper listened to a lot of club-style music, electronic stuff with pop lyrics and dubstep. This was darker -the kind of music that made you shiver and moved under your skin.

from Drunk Dial (a teen wolf fanfic)...

"You're not, you're not... who are you? No, you're Derek, I knew that. Right. Yeah, okay. How'r you? Did you want somethin?"  

Derek blinked. "Stiles you called me." 

"I did? Oh look at that, I did. Wait, no, I called Scott. Are you sure you're not Scott?" 

Derek rolled his eyes even though Stiles couldn’t see it. Stiles had that effect on him. "How much have you had to drink?" 

"Not... not, I mean some... a lot. A whole bag" he replied. 

Derek blinked. “I… a bag of what?” 

“Dicks.”  

“A bag of dicks?” 

“What the fuck are you talking about dicks for Derek?” Stiles asked, which was followed by a bout of drunken giggling. Derek huffed. 

“Was there a reason for this call?”

And there you have it, things I have been writing. I have been writing a lot of fanfic. And as you can see from that excerpt above, some of it is fairly ridiculous. No shame.

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url change

So I'm a butt and I changed my url again. My previous one, "manda-rave", was a bit problematic for me because I actually have stopped using "Rave" in everything. So I just changed it to the same as the blog title -strangeinkandwine.

I did set a redirect though, so outside links will still bring you here and not to the old url.

Sorry for the inconvenience.

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(Instagram) Photo Dump

found this tucked away in my journal, it's from forestferncreations.

we dog-sat for awhile last week, Eli was thoroughly terrified.

painted my nails a pretty mint colour, the polish is "susie" from julep

i went to the doctors and felt compelled to photograph this poster.

reading Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore. such a pretty book.

waking up to Eli sleeping at my feet.

rainy morning spent with tumblr, coffee, and writing.

my instagram

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I Am Grateful 5/2/2014

I am a terrible blogger these days, I know, I apologize. I wish I could tell you all I'm going to be better about it from here on out, but I have no idea if that's true or not. For now, a list of things I'm grateful for lately.

source

• The never-ending support and love of my best friend. She puts up with my excessive fangirling, my ceaseless anxiety, and my nervous breakdowns. She lets me stay at her house for full weeks and eat her food and curl up under her blankets. Also for encouraging my writing, giving me feedback, and helping me flesh out my ideas.
• The wonderful people I've met online, through blogging and through tumblr, who send me love and are patient with me when I don't always respond to their messages immediately. I'm trying so hard to be more sociable and it means the world to me that there are people who are willing to put up with me in the meantime.
• My mom for making me go to the doctor's and for bringing my medication to me so that I can work on getting better and being happier.
• The warm air and sunshine currently coming through my window and the little flowers popping up in the yard. 

What are you grateful for lately?

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