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Showing posts from April, 2018

We Live in a Society

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We live in a society where names get pulled out of anything and anywhere. I've heard of people getting made fun of for having names taken from nature, but then we also as a society make fun of people with names like Shannon (because of how shockingly stereotypical these soccer moms apparently are). I've known people named River and Brook and Cloud who are assumed to be hippies because of their names, in the same way that Shannon is assumed to have a short hair-cut and a mini van. As the population rises, people look for more and more ways to feel unique. They want their children to be unique from other kids. And they don't want to have forty Madison's in one classroom. Personally, I enjoy unique names. Sometimes, sure, parents can get out of hand with names, but the children themselves cannot control what their names turn out to be. While these kids might wish they had a more normal name, I wish mine was more unique. My first name is very common, and my last n...

My Best Moments

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My best moments are often outdoors when it's warm. I love going on walks and running and taking the dog out. I love when my boyfriend will join me on a walk and whether or not we talk doesn't matter, because we're both utterly happy just to be. I spent most of my time in Colorado outdoors. My brother took me into the mountains and we hiked, even after it began to downpour. We were in love with the environment and the movement, so the rain didn't dowse our joy one bit. I spent a lot of time outdoors in Florida. My sister-in-law took me to St. Augustine, and I fell in love with the ocean for the first time. It wasn't my first time seeing it, but it was my first time appreciating its beauty and power and gentleness. The waves were strong but the water lapping at the sand was soothing and mesmerizing to watch. I never wanted to leave and I always want to go back. I spent all of my time in Guatemala outside. Our homestay had a wide, open patio directly in the c...

Weight Loss Weather

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 As the weather gets warmer, I seem to get my act together. Maybe it's because school is slowing down, and maybe it's because I left seasonal depression in the departed snow. Either way,  things are going well again. Last summer is when I made my greatest effort to lose weight. I lost 47 pounds between April and August, and I'd never felt so good about myself. How did I do it? I ran three miles every single day. I began paying attention to portion sizes and just focused on taking care of me. However, when school started up again in August, I gained 30 pounds back. It really bummed me out and I just kept telling myself, hoping that it would be true, that when it got warm again I would get back into my health kick. You see, over the school year, I would have class from 9 am to 3 pm, and then I would often work from 5pm to 10 pm. I went through my day starving myself or snacking unhealthily on candies to fill me up, and then I would finally get to have dinner after I...

My Cousin and Honey Bees

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About a year and a half ago, my favorite cousin in the world took an internship studying honey bees. Her name is Ashley and she attended Ohio State University and majored in Forestry and Wildlife. She loves animals more than anyone I know, and she is also the bravest person I know to have wanted to work with bees. But she loved it. She often sent me pictures and taught me odd-ball little facts about honey bees and their honey. Apparently you can freeze honey bees, and when they thaw, they're A-okay. One day, Ashley sent me this photo to the right. It's a queen bee that she was studying and those white bags are the queen's ovaries. Yeah. As gross as I find it, Ashley was enthusiastic to talk about it and I always participate because she's my best friend and it really is interesting. She also grew her own tube bee-babies! Below, you can see the little larva-like crescents, curled up in their tubes. Using her science-y abilities to take genetics and make things out ...