A wedding and a baby shower....not necessarily in that order

Happy Frid-

I mean...HAPPY THURSDAY :)

You might be wondering why I'm posting a day early. 

*silence with cricket sounds* No? That's fine. I will tell you anyway. 

This coming weekend is a busy one for me. 

Friday - going out with a friend

Saturday morning - baby shower

Saturday afternoon/night - wedding/reception 

Sunday - napping

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Okay, you got me. I have absolutely no idea to write about. I could write about baby showers or college friends, but I'm just not feeling it. 

I'm almost 19 and (1/2) years old. And I'm not afraid to admit that I have never been kissed. Most of the time that doesn't bother me. The perk of being the youngest on both sides of the family is that I get to watch and learn from my family's relationship experiences. 

Wanting a marriage vs. Wanting a wedding

To me there is a difference. In today's society with celebrity weddings and Pinterest (admit, ladies, you know it's true), it is easy to get caught up with the superficial aspect of weddings. Ever since I started remembering the weddings I attended as a child, I can and will admit that's all they were to me. Oh, another wedding to go to....where there's free food and cake!

But somewhere all the along the way, all those weddings transformed to marriages. And it gets me thinking, as I sit alone while a slow song plays, that many people (those who actually want to get married someday) want a wedding. And I would almost bet that most of those people are women (not be gender stereotyping). 

I will admit that I once wanted a wedding. But now? I want (or hope for) a marriage. A long-lasting relationship where we grow with each other and tell our grandchildren the funny story of how we met. I saw somewhere that Romeo and Juliet isn't not love, but it's the old couple who stayed together not matter what. 

I know that right now it's a dream. Hopefully one day it will be a reality for me.

Until next time....

Thought of the day

   

Graduation and Memorial Day brings out nostalgic feelings

Happppy Friday all!

I have been struggling with what to write about for this post. No, seriously, the struggle is real. 

Then I realized that Memorial Day and Graduation Day (for the Class of 2015) are this weekend. As I thought more about it, they both bring nostalgic feelings to me.

Graduation (of high school) 

This past week I have seen so many TimeHops from members of my classmates (CLASS OF 2014 4-EVA...jk) back to the graduation ceremony last year. It was kind of nice seeing pictures from that day. After 20 million posts, I'm like...

(Thanks, Cap. You summed it up perfectly.)

But I will admit that it did bring back some memories from that day. I said goodbye to a dear friend of mine who went to the University of Kentucky. The fact that that part of my life was over hadn't hit me until that day. High school was OVER. A part of me was glad to get a new chance to start over at UNI (University of Northern Iowa for those who don't know). The other part of me was sad to leave all that I have ever known and all the memories and experiences I gained. 

To sum up graduating from high school feels like (for most people): bittersweet....nostalgic.

Memorial Day

This is funny exchange happened between me and a co-worker (sorts). He is a member of the Coast Guard. So military. This is how the conversation went.

• Me: It is Memorial Day weekend. But I have seen photos on my Facebook Timeline of a crying little boy being handed a folded up flag, and the words "Just in case you thought it was National BBQ Day" 

• Him: Yeah, if only it was possible to switch around Veteran's Day and Memorial Day, so that could be possible and just invite a veteran to your BBQ. *laughs*

• Me: There we go! 

As a proud granddaughter of two grandfathers who served in the Korean War, this holiday hits very close to home. Yes, I didn't lose my grandfathers in the war, but that doesn't mean this holiday isn't any easier for me to get through. 

If I was honest (and I am), I never really thought of Memorial Day as a popular day to just chill and grill out. I have been raised to respect that day that is dedicated specifically to the people who sacrificed their lives by protecting our great country. 

Sure, people like to BBQ on this day. I have nothing against that. But what I'm trying to get at is that make sure to take the time to remember why and how we get to celebrate and enjoy this day. People sacrificed their lives so that we can sit back and relax on this day. 

I know it's a short post this week, but that's all I have for this week! 

I hope you all have a safe Memorial Day. (And thank a veteran and/or a veteran's family for their service and/or sacrifice.)  

Thought of the Day:

'Tis the season for season finales of my tv shows and philosophical thinking

  Happy Friday all!

            If this is the first post of mine that you are reading, please feel free to read my first post to get more familiarity with who I am and what my purpose is with this blog.

WHAT TIME IS IT? SUMMERTIME! 

That's right! No homework, no studying to do. 

Honestly? It feels great not having to worry about homework and studying. That doesn't mean I haven't been trying to keep up with what's been going in the news and learning/trying new things so my brain doesn't go on a full 3-month vacation. 

My summer roommate is Chinese. Yes, really. No, I won't take a picture to prove it. You just got trust me on this one. It's been kinda of a culture shock for me- sometimes it's really hard to talk with her and there are things that she does that I'm like what the hell and there habits that bother me (like leaving water all over and around the sink and the floor). I'm not saying I want to move out. Really I'm marking this experience off as "diversifying myself" and "learning more about a culture different from mine".

On the bright side, I have caught up on most of my movie watching. The Theory of Everything, Big Hero 6, American Sniper, Guardians of the Galaxy. All AMAZING MOVIES. I gotta be honest. Big Hero 6 made me cry and really hit home for me in so many ways. Which is weird because I didn't think I'd like it all that much (for what reason? I don't know), but I keep seeing posts about Baymax on my tumblr dash. And I was like "you know what? I need to see this movie." I'm glad I did watch it. Now, I want my own personal Baymax. I need Baymax to become a thing, a real thing. He's like your own personal marshmallow. Not the kind of marshmallow you eat, though.

My name is Melissa Curtis, and I'm (happily) addicted to Arrow, The Flash, The 100, and Suits. As I mentioned in the title of this post, it is the time of the year for season finales. 

Arrow's Season 3 finale was this past Wednesday. AMAZING. SERIOUSLY. SINCERIOUSLY. (side note: I would try to explain this campaign but I wouldn't do it justice. For a short recap, it's promoting a word with selling items like t-shirts and mugs but the all the proceeds go to amazing charities/organizations. Click here for the background on this...bonus you get to see Stephen Amell at his finest!)

The Flash (a spinoff from Arrow) has their Season 1 finale next Wednesday. EEKKK.

The 100 status: on break right now. (btw, my shipper heart broke at the end of season 2 finale.) 

Suits status: COMES BACK ON JUNE 25TH. (btw, my shipper heart broke at the end of season 4 finale). 

***Fact of the day: Melissa is an avid fangirl and shipper (Shipping, initially derived from the word relationship, is the desire by fans of two people, either real-life celebrities or fictional characters, to be in a relationship, romantic or otherwise. Thanks, Google!)*** 

For those who don't know or haven't heard of Arrow, the sparknotes version of a description is that it's like a modern day Robin Hood (basically the first season). I seriously recommend it. I love the characters and the actors (cough cough Stephen Amell) do an outstanding job portraying the characters while still adding their own personal quirks or touches. Plus you get to see HOT Stephen Amell (shown below) shirtless...a lot...and working out....a lot... (yes, I know I am objectifying him and that's wrong to do. I can't help it. SO SUE ME. ........ please don't do that-I'm a poor college student.) 

As mentioned above, The Flash is spinoff from Arrow. (**I STRONGLY RECOMMEND STARTING WITH ARROW FIRST. To me the two shows are co-dependent in terms that they crossover and play off each other.) The show follows the life of Barry Allen who becomes the fastest man alive (aka The Flash) by accident. He struggles with his obvious crush on his girl best friend and struggles with figuring out who killed his mom. It's only on its first season, but I love watching this show. Plus, Grant Gustin is sooooo easy on the eyes, AND HE CAN SING. Gahhh! 

The 100 (it is based off of the popular book series of the same name by Kass Morgan) is set 99 years in the future after an apocalyptic nuclear attack made the Earth unlivable. The Ark (like a space station) is dying and the "president" sends The 100 (a group of teenage delinquents) to see if Earth is habitable. Like any good dystopian tv show, the 100 soon learn they are not the only ones on Earth and need come together as a community to survive. I first started watching this start because I would see stuff pop up on my tumblr dash (mildly interested) and then I was caught up after binge-watching The Flash and needed something to watch (definitely interested). I. Was. Hooked. Like the other two addictions, there is a hot male character involved (why wouldn't there be?). Bob Morley aka Bellamy Blake. Sigh. The gif is worth more words than I can possibly come up with.

Suits. I originally started watching because my dad was. He had it on one night, and I looked up from my homework and couldn't stop watching. Me, being an idiot, kept watching the episodes that were premiering every week. I finally watched the episodes I missed this past winter break. The show follows Mike Ross, an intelligent man with photographic memory, wasn't able to go to law school (which reasons are eventually explained) but is hired by Harvey Spector, an equally intelligent man who is emotionally stunted and sometimes is ruthless, at a prodigious and well-respected law firm in New York (who only hires from Harvard...seriously, it's a rule and requirement). Think: to cover up one lie, one has to tell more and more lies. This show not only has one, but TWO ridiculously hot men, Gabriel Macht as Harvey and Patrick J. Adams as Mike. Seriously. It's unfair but awesome all in the same. 

Philosophical Thinking/Random thoughts

• I'm scared to talk to or approach a guy because I don't know for sure if he actually likes me or if he just humoring (re: pitying) me. That unknown is too scary for me to take a risk. 

•  Does this mean I am scared of liking a guy, trusting a guy, letting someone in? 

• Hell yes.

•  Does not taking that risk make me weak? 

• Possibly.

• If I don't get over the fact of that great unknown, could I end up regretting it and ending up alone?

• It's likely.  

• Some people are beautiful by their words. Some people are beautiful by their physical appearance. Some people are beautiful by their actions. Rare people are beautiful by all three reasons.  

• I know relationships take time, but I don't see any guys sticking around long enough for that to happen.

• I wonder if any guys go out of their way to do or say something they think might impress me.

• " I hate being so f***ing lonely. Everyone tells me I deserve the moon and, in the same breath, say, 'but I can't give it to you.' Is that hard to be a partner? To hold me close when I need it? " -Anonymous

• "You'd lose your mind trying to understand mine." -Anonymous 

• In reply, "Losing my mind would be worth getting know yours."                                                                                             -Anonymous   

FIRST POST - S/O to Kerra Kruse (aka Jeff Rhino) for inspiring me to start my own blog

Wow. Where do I start?

*coughs* I suppose I should introduce myself.

My name is Melissa Curtis. I'm from a small town in Iowa called Manchester.

There are a total of five people (six if you count Marty) in my family.

Mom-Joyce / Dad-Delwyn / Brother-Billy / Sister-Rachel / ME / Cat-Marty

Basics are done....now diving right into my life as right now.

(A warning of sorts. I may use many gifs or images. Some of them will make sense and some may not.)

(I could not resist.)

As I write this post, I am sitting in my dorm room after surviving my freshman year of college at the University of Northern Iowa. My roommate has moved out. While I'm sad to see her go, it kinda has been a relief. First semester roommate is a long and kinda maddening story for another time, so I was hoping for a better experience this semester. And for while, it was...until she got settled in and made other friends besides me. Then I became full-time roommate/part-time (re: occasional) friend. After having some time to think and reflect, I realize it could have been worse. Maybe I was just holding onto the hope that I would be able to find the kind of friends you make people always talk about: "college friends will be your forever friends." True, maybe that wasn't true for Tracy and I, but that doesn't mean we didn't have some good times together because we did. If Tracy is reading this, please know that I'm so glad to have met you and experience what we did. :)

Surviving freshman year

Yes, I survived freshman year. No, I don't have a "How to Survive Your Freshman Year"-for-dummies book written yet.

I find it hard to figure out the words to sum up all the friends I have made, the good (and not so good) experiences I have had, and the memories I will never forget. Looking back at my first day, I remember being the most nervous girl in the room. Now, I see a confident woman. I have learned so much about myself over the course of the year, and I don't regret a single moment of it. Thank you to the many people for helping me-though it is not possible to name them all. I so hope they all know how much I appreciate the support and advice over the course of the year.

Many questions college freshman get are.....

• Do you go partying every weekend?
• Are your classes hard?
• How many times have you changed your major?
• Do you have to, like, study?
• How does college change you?

The list goes on and on. For my answers,

• Nope! I rarely went partying for multiple reasons. 1.) I'm an introvert. 2.) Along with being an introvert, I was also shy. 3.) Combining being an introverted with shyness, I didn't know many parties to go to. 

"Enjoy the college experience, but also remember that you are there to get an education, first and foremost." -Melissa Curtis (aka me)

• YES. YES. YES. I cannot stress that one enough. What also makes class difficulty hard to answer is that everyone's not taking the same classes because people are majoring in different areas.

"All majors seem easy when you are the one on the outside looking in, but if you really have a passion for something, then you would be welcoming the challenge of that particular major." -Me...again

• Zilch. Zero. But I will be changing from being an art major (long story for another blog post) to Interactive Digital Studies. 

"Don't be afraid to change your major. College is the time to explore different areas. If you don't like yours, explore your options. The best way to do that? Talk to a professor or academic advisor and they will be able to guide you (and they love doing it, too!)." -Me...do I really need to keep doing these?

• Again, YES! When you graduate high school and go to college, you think, "I know how to study." WRONG. Well, most of the time you are. A professor of mine once told me "Ask what you will be tested on: based on lecture material or based on the textbook readings." Sinceriously, guys, do this and you'll at least know what to study. 

"Pro tip: actually do the readings from the textbooks (those things? yes, those things)." -Me....I don't know why I keep doing this.

•  That's a tough one to answer. My experiences are different from what yours will be. Going into college, I thought I knew exactly who I was: a book smart yet street smart girl majoring in art just like my sister. About halfway through the fall semester it hit. I don't know who I really was or am. That freaked me out. I about had a panic attack in class. But, after some time (re: still working on it), I have realized that it is okay. It's kind of the reason of college: to find yourself or become someone else (to start over, if you will).

"Sometimes not having everything figured out is a good thing. It may suck and be frustrating as hell, but let things happen as they are supposed to." -Me...Seriously, guys, I swear this is the last one.