Guten Tag

I just feel the need to come back to this pet project of mine.

It's been a while.

Hi.

Did I mention before my silence that I was going to serve as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints? I did that. I lived in Germany for 18 months and I fell in love with the whole world.

And then I came home to my family freefall of summer and life has been insane.

And I moved from Myneton this last week to start university. First day of class is tomorrow. I have a bassoon lesson and choir. :)

And I want to come back to this free space of writing and sharing thoughts with a nonexistent audience. Perhaps someday more people will be here.

But for now, it's just thoughts, really.

Fangirl Friday: Blogs!

So, I follow a few blogs. And I just need to share them, because they're wonderful!

The first blog I started following is Cakewrecks. It's exactly what it sounds like- a blog that makes fun of cakes gone wrong, professional cakes that turned out hilariously awful. It's SO FUNNY. It includes gems like these:
 

This cake is the cake that started it all. It's a classic.

 

Still not sure what the story on "Falker Satherhood" is. But it's FUNNY.

 

Yes, this creepy baby cake is REAL. And yes, someone paid for it. 0.o

However, to restore your faith in cake makers, every Sunday, the lovely folks at Cakewrecks post Sunday Sweets, which are AMAZING.
Like this:

Also, posts tend to be full of geeky references and jokes. SO MANY JOKES.
So, that's Cakewrecks.

Then, a few years ago, the primary author of Cakewrecks, Jen, started another blog: Epbot. Her tagline for the blog is "Geekery, Girliness, & Goofing Off," and that's exactly what it is. Jen posts amazing tutorials for crafts that she and her husband John have done, ranging from Halloween eyeball wreaths...

to steampunk goggles...
to Harry Potter Death Eater Masks...
 
and a whole lot more!
Jen also posts a lot of geek stuff, and Jen and John go to a lot of conventions, so she posts cosplay pictures and con survival guides. She posts about books she's read, and movies she loves. And she also is real about her life, including her struggles with anxiety, and their cat who overgrooms. Epbot is a lovely corner of the internet full of happy things.

Then, there's It Just Gets Stranger. I will be honest, I'm not sure how I found this blog. But it's wonderful! Eli blogs about everything from his job as a lawyer to his Iron Man training to his neighbours "The Perfects" and his friends. He also travels a lot, and posts amazing pictures. But the cool thing about this blog is that it ranges from incredibly silly (The Lost Journal Series), to very deep (A Kentucky Clerk), and everywhere in between (Pictures and Distractions). The Stranger community is a good one. :)

And the last one is one I just check up on every once in a while, but it's HILARIOUS. Obvious Plant is full of shenanigans. Basically, this guy makes signs and ads and posts them places. Like this:



 He goes to a lot of effort to make pamphlets and posters and store labels, and it's all good fun.

So that's the effort for today. Enjoy my blogs!
 

Compare and Contrast

So, y'all know about Tak. (a quick summary: my high school best friend, and crush, dated him sophomore year, he went to college, we broke up, and aren't really friends anymore) But you don't know about Baw. (a quick summary: my older brother's best friend in Podunk, I had a crush on him in middle school that faded after we moved to Myneton) So, this week, Baw returned from his mission to the Chile Osborno Mission, and of course, big brother (oh my gosh I'm bad at this blogging stuff. big brother got home from the Mexcio City East mission on October 17, and we've basically been hanging out nonstop since then, because we have no obligations.) and I had to go to the airport when he flew in, because big brother was STOKED to see him again! And then we went to his homecoming talk this Sunday... And I just got thinking.

First off, it was so fun to see Baw and my big brother together again. Going on nine years of friendship, and they're hilarious. And they get each other- they really just go together.

But I couldn't help comparing Baw and Tak. They're really similar, and I had crushes on the two of them for a lot of the same reasons- musician, funny, kind, a strong testimony of the Gospel... But looking at them now, it's like...
Well, Baw is still all of those things that I liked. And Tak isn't anymore. I mean, Tak and I haven't even talked in over a year (because he thinks it'd be awkward or something? not really sure...), but from Rle's friendship with him, we know that he's sort of fallen away from the Church (sad, sad, sad!). And he's just... changed a lot since high school. I mean, he's still cute and musical, but he seems to be less considerate, less kind, and he's lost that light. It's like he's become a worse version of himself, I guess. It's sad.
But Baw is shining with this Gospel light, and he's so excited about his testimony, and the chance he had to go to Chile. And he's still cute and musical, and funny and kind, and all the things I liked.

Just, looking at the two of them now... Well, if I were looking to date right now (which I'm not because I'M GOING ON A MISSION IN 42 DAYS!!!! :) Germany here I come!), Baw is exactly the sort of guy I'd go on a date with, someone I'd love to have in my friend group. And Tak is not even on that radar.

It's interesting to see the contrast in them in the two years since they've graduated.