its been too long...

♪♫ Dilemma - Green Day

Wow! Its been way too long since I last blogged. Oops! I have had an eventful time since my last post. I'm too lazy to write it out, so I'm going to list it in bullet form (in no particular order):

• I went on a two week trip to see my best friend Kara. She lives near the US border, so we went on a trip to Bangor, Maine for a night. We did Stephen King touring (on our own), since we are both big fans. We also did lots of shopping and ate at Olive Garden (my favorite restaurant ever now). I purchased a lot of stuff at Walmart and Target, haha. Some items include; a Tree Hut body scrub (which I'm obsessed with now), a Goosebumps sweatshirt, a little plush Pennywise doll, a Body Fantasies spray, a jack-o-lantern face shirt, snacks, and more.

• Began planning for a Salem/Boston trip in August 2024. We are driving (only 5.5 hours from where my best friend lives). We are going for four days and have already booked our Airbnb. However... for our last night, we are actually staying the night at Lizzie Borden's house in Fall River. We are both really into paranormal stuff and true crime, so we are super excited!

• Speaking of trips, I went to Ontario in November, and stayed there for four days. It was my first time there, and I really enjoyed it. Also, the trip was almost free because I used an Air Canada voucher (they gave me because of the 24 delay/cancellation when I returned from New York), which covered the cost of the roundtrip flight. I also stayed with a friend, so the accomodation was free. She lives in Hamilton, which is halfway between Toronto and Niagara Falls, so we went to both! We did Toronto the first day, where I saw the CN tower, did some shopping, and wandered around. Then the next day we did Niagara Falls. We stayed at an Airbnb for the night because we had plans to drink. First we stopped at the falls to see them lit up at night, then we went to a bar and got drunk, haha. The next day we drove across to Niagara Falls, NY to eat at Olive Garden. The whole trip was tons of fun!

• I graduated from university. I got my degree with honours and I also made the dean's list, so I am very proud of myself! After my graduation ceremony, I went out for lunch with family to celebrate and I got some gifts; a 10k gold heart locket, a Juicy Couture purse, and Halloween cupcakes. Not pictured are the monetary gifts I recieved.

• I already started another degree at a different university. I am doing a social work degree now. Its online and since I'm doing it part time, it should take about three years to complete.

• I have discovered I have mild lactose intolerance. Since I switched to lactose free products, I am feeling a lot better.

• I have been cooking a lot more and perfecting my skills. I've made stews, soups, gumbo, goulash, and more. Everyone has raved about how good my food is! I ended up buying the cutest crockpot that is the perfect size to make myself a few days' worth of meals.

• I turned 31 in December. I decided to go visit my best friend Kara again. Her birthday is also in December, so we decided to celebrate together. Before I left, I had a dinner with my family and they gave me gifts. I forgot to take pictures of most of the gifts. However, I did get a picture of the gifts my dad gave me; David Lynch's Dynamic:01 on DVD, Sex Pistols on vinyl, and the Criterion version of Lost Highway. He knows me so well!

• When I went to visit my best friend Kara, we did lots of stuff. For celebrating our birthdays, we got an ice cream cake that has our nicknames for each other on it (long story haha), and had a fancy dinner with drinks. We also exchanged gifts. While I was there, we also visited the US multiple times for shopping and eating out (since its so close to her house). I went a little crazy at the US Walmart, haha. I stocked up on a year's worth of Tree Hut scrubs because we don't have them in Canada. The downsides of the trip was a windstorm that knocked the power out for a few days, having food poisoning for two days, and getting a flat tire just before my trip!

• As soon as I returned from my birthday trip, I only had a few days until Christmas, so I got right to work on making a double batch of my family's traditional shortbread cookies. This year's batch was the best so far! I also added a new shape to the cookie cutters: mushroom! Its so cute!

I can't think of much else that is new. I will try to keep up with blogging!

happy 10 year anniversary to my blog!

♪♫ Brass Devil - Parov Stelar

Thats right! I have had this blog for exactly 10 years today! I have been blogging in general for almost 15 years, but I've had this blog for 10 of those years and its been a wonderful journey. This blog has helped me in so many ways, mostly with processing a lot of past trauma and emotions about things. I have come a long way since I started this blog. I was 17 years old and was living on my own through a program for homeless teens. I was a high school dropout and was binge drinking frequently. My mental health was garbage. I was dirt poor. I smoked cigarettes. I was self destructive and chaotic. Now I'm 27 and I'm a live-in support worker for youth. I have another job at a homeless shelter for youth and I have maybe 5 glasses of wine per year. My mental health is stable. I make a comfortable income. I quit smoking. I do lots of self care and I'm calm. I feel completely different! Anyways, I got a little cake to celebrate...

Another small anniversary announcement; its been one year since I graduated from college! Woo!

Moving on... quarantine restrictions have been lifted where I live. Not entirely, but we can do a lot more stuff now. I was able to visit my family a few days ago and we had pizza/set up a porch swing on my grandmother's deck. Next week I'm going to see them for a family BBQ! I also went for lunch with my dad yesterday and we looked around in a few local stores. I ended up buying 4 more little cacti babies and a cactus light as well. Oh and at work I made some cute things; a travel journal and two roll on essential oils (I love unexpected self care)! I can't tell you how wonderful it felt to go out and do normal things again. It really reduced my level of stress. I'm excited to do more stuff!

The ones in the white pots are new! I've named them (from left to right); Theodora, Lana, Frank, Ed, and Lou! The cactus light isn't very bright, but its cute.

Also... look at my first baby's flowers! It hasn't bloomed in so long and I'm so excited!

Here is the travel journal and roll on essential oils.

Yesterday I also got a bed frame for my bed. My boss dropped it off, along with a mattress cover. She also gave me a thank you card and told me that I'll be getting a Bed, Bath and Beyond gift card soon (because I worked through the pandemic)! Speaking of new stuff, I also did a lot of online shopping recently. I bought a new planner that I can start using in August. Its different than my old one, but I am excited to try out a different format. I also bought tons of stickers for it and some washi tape. I also ordered a grow lamp for my cacti (I live in Canada & there isn't enough sun for my cacti to be happy) and a night table (I was using a standing tray thingy from the dollar store - I decided its time to treat myself to a nice night table)!

One last purchase announcement; The Last of Us Part II is out tomorrow! I already have it pre-ordered, so I'm just going to wait to get it in the mail. Hopefully it comes early next week. I really want to play it on Tuesday when I have a day off from work (I work for the next 5 days). I'll have to grab some munchies too. I'm so excited! I also heard they are introducing a transgender character, which is so awesome! I love how diverse the game is!

That is all for now. I'm going to go read my old blogs and reminisce about the old days. If you are interested in reading my old blogs, my archive is at the bottom of the page. You can even read my first blog on June 18th, 2010! Anyways, I hope everyone is well!

i graduated from college!

♪♫ Walk Me Home - P!nk

I can't believe I finally get to say that I graduated from college! I did it! I got my diploma! Wooo! I am beyond happy. Words can't even express how good I feel right now. I used to be a homeless high school dropout with a drinking problem and severe mental health issues (primarily PTSD). My life was utter hell and I never thought that I'd turn it all around. It all feels so surreal. This is my biggest accomplishment thus far! Here is a video of me receiving my diploma...



Here is my diploma...


After my graduation, I went to lunch with my grandmother, my dad, and my boyfriend. We went to one of my favorite restaurants, which I chose. I had a lentil burger, sweet potato fries, apple pie, vanilla ice cream, and a root beer. It was so yummy! Everyone gave me a gift, which was lovely! For gifts, I got $1100 in cash and the following items; a graduation mug, The Book of Revelation for Dummies, and a kit to name a star! I am saving most of the money, but I did spend a few hundred on stuff I needed; a frame for my diploma, a pair of black Vans, five new tops, a package of new socks, two new bras, and other random small things that I needed. The tops and Vans are needed for when I get a job (when I wear t-shirts & hoodies to work, people assume that I'm a youth, so I decided to get some more mature/professional looking tops to stand out as a worker, & the Vans are good for being on my feet all day, which I will have to do for every job in my field).



I also already have a burgundy one just like the first two and a rose pink one that is similar to the first two, but has a v-neck. I have one for everyday of the week & in a variety of colors!
Today has been a busy day. I did laundry, cleaned my room, went through my stuff and got rid of stuff I don't use/want, and worked on Twin Peaks inspired rings to sell in my Etsy shop. I used to sell them a couple years ago and they were my best selling item. I sold 2-3 per day! I found a bunch of the supplies needed to make them in my storage room and decided to spend $30 on the rest of the supplies needed, so that I could make some money. I'll be able to make about 50 rings in total, which will be a profit of $750. I anticipate it will only take 6-ish weeks to sell them all. Maybe two months at the most. I'm going to save all the money from them and put it into my savings for driving lessons! I will only have to sell 3 rings to begin making profit, which I'm sure won't take long. Oh, and I got a couple of the things that I ordered online in the mail today!


I'm so in love with the top & the makeup bag! They are gorgeous!
That's all for now! I'll leave you with this meme that I waited 3 years to post...



Also: the 18th was my blog's 9 year anniversary! ♥