273/365

Is "In Her Shoes" the movie with Cameron Diaz where she has trouble reading and then goes to Miami and works in a nursing home reading to the elderly? The answer is yes, I think, but I was just thinking about how nice it would be to get to read to older people. It's also similar to the movie "The Reader" about the boy having an affair with an older woman and he reads to her because she cannot read English... Only minus the fact that she's a Nazi. Either way, I think it is really nice to read to people because books are so special to some people and who wouldn't want to give something special to someone?

I remember when I was in the third grade and my teacher would always bring one of her former students to read to the class and it was so nice and I always wanted to be the kid that got called back... I wasn't, but perhaps I've been wanted to read to people for a long time... So maybe I am in the right major, no matter how crazy I feel right now.

catch you later,

Karleigh

“Until I feared I would lose it, I never loved to read. One does not love breathing.” // Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird

272/365

Sometimes I get really caught up in reading all of the articles that people post on Facebook. It's a black hole, yaknow? Suddenly you click on what cat gifs represent college students and then you are reading about all of the stuff that will be added/removed from Netflix. That's what happens to me a lot -- today it was the Netflix one. Thankfully, Netflix is adding a lot of old movies this October but they are taking off a good number of things too. I didn't know too much about most of the films they were removing, but I did notice one that I wanted to watch.

I've never seen Angela's Ashes before, but I have heard about it. I watched a little of the beginning and within the first thirty minutes three of five of this woman's children had died... So, as a person that loves hard and trying films about resilient people, I called my mom so we could watch it together this weekend. I'm really excited, which is probably not so great to tell about me.

catch you later,
Karleigh

"He says, you have to study and learn so that you can make up your own mind about history and everything else but you can’t make up an empty mind. Stock your mind, stock your mind. You might be poor, your shoes might be broken, but your mind is a palace.” // Frank McCourt, Angela's Ashes

271/365

I never do very well on my first tests. It's like my brain doesn't know what to expect and so I can't study in a way that will help me. Usually I'm big on writing my notes by hand, because studies have shown that writing your notes by hand is super beneficial to the learning process. However, this semester I have been in my first couple of classes where the instructor moves so quickly that I'm unable to keep up when I take notes the traditional way. So I downloaded Microsoft OneNote. It's a free download to your computer or your phone -- or maybe your tablet/iPad too but I don't have one of those -- and it's definitely saved my life when it comes to taking notes. But I still feel like I'm not really taking in the information; I'm just copying the slides word for word instead of jotting down the notes in my own words. So when exams come around, I'm basically relearning all of the information that I didn't fully grasp before. 

This leaves me in a bit of a pickle, because now I'm back to learning new information for the next test and I'm still have to take notes on the computer. I suppose I could transcribe them into my notebook but that sounds ridiculously time consuming and just... tedious. Anywho, this is what I'm working on right now... how to take notes in a way that aids to my memory on the subject. Hopefully I'll figure it out soon.

catch you later,

Karleigh

I will go before you and make the crooked places straight. // Isaiah 45:2

270/365

I am back at school now after an awesome weekend in Jackson and New Orleans. I definitely had a great trip, especially since I got to see two of my best friends. I also met Lea Michele... kinda a big deal for me. When I was in high school, I was super in love with Glee. You probably remember me blogging about the final season earlier in the year. Well, I saw Lea Michele -- and her character, Rachel Berry -- as such a positive influence. If there is one thing we need more of on television, it is a strong, independent woman going after what she wants in life. I changed a lot of my ideas about my future and I feel like I really turned my ideals around after I saw how confident and amazing Lea Michele was and is. So, this weekend, I fulfilled every dream that I had when I was eighteen years old, which was amazing.

catch you later,

Karleigh

“It's so important, so comforting, to have lampposts in this world who can light the way.” // Lea Michele, Brunette Ambition

269/365

I love going new places and I love to tell you guys about the places that I've been. I can't believe that I've been able to share going to San Antonio, Chicago, and now New Orleans with you guys. Of course as I'm writing this I haven't been yet, but I will be driving over that giant bridge sometime later this afternoon. I've always wanted to go to New Orleans, even though I won't get to stay too long today. At least I get to go! And there will always be another time to check out the antique stores -- which I love to do in foreign cities -- and the cute little restaurants. And as a fan of blues music, I must say that it is high time that I get my butt down to New Orleans. 

catch you later,

Karleigh

“New Orleans food is as delicious as the less criminal forms of sin.” // Mark Twain

268/365

Tonight I got to see a really awesome production of "Into the Woods" at Mississippi College. I had never seen "Into the Woods" until earlier this spring when a few of my friends really didn't want to see a horror movie instead. I fell in love with the stories within the musical and so I really enjoyed the show tonight. I always recommend seeing live plays, even school productions, because there is something very special about seeing plays performed before you. 

catch you later,

Karleigh

"Stay a child while you can be a child."// Witch.

267/365

I really should stop putting off studying for tests until the night before, especially if they are upper level courses. Tomorrow, I'm driving down to Jackson and that is possibly the only thing keeping me going at this point. To any of you that have papers due tomorrow (like me) or tests (also, like me), good luck. If you have waited like I have, then you will need it.

catch you later,

Karleigh

“Procrastination is my sin. It brings me naught but sorrow. I know that I should stop it. In fact, I will--tomorrow” // Gloria Pitzer

266/365

I am so excited that it is officially my favorite season. I love fall because it's got the best colors, weather and holidays. It's my favorite. Truly. I love autumnal colors, like for fingernail polishes and lipsticks, and I love cooler weather because then the clothes are so much better. Also I'm not constantly sweating buckets. That's always a plus. My most favorite thing about autumn is the holidays though. I love Halloween and Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is great because it's all food and pie and... more pie. But Halloween is where it's at. The movies and the costumes... I love it. I love Hocus Pocus the most, maybe Sleepy Hollow too. Actually, when I was younger my favorite Halloween movie was the animated version of Sleepy Hollow. The depiction of Ichabod Crane is so adorable and the animated bits make it a lot less creepy or scary than in the Johnny Depp version. Overall, I'm just ready to break out the candy corn and my fleece tights.

catch you later,

Karleigh

"Life starts all over again when it gets crisp in the fall." // F. Scott Fitzgerald

265/365

I remember the year that I was in the fifth grade very well. I think that was one of the last years that I really enjoyed school, like before people learned what flatirons were and that being mean to each other was "cool." In fifth grade, you still feel a lot like a baby and you get to really just enjoy yourself as yourself. I remember that year for a few reasons: one girl stuck a pair of childproof scissors in a light socket, a girl with legs a mile long sat behind me, and we got to go to the library every week. 

I've always loved books and, therefore, libraries. I rented a ton of books when I was in the fifth grade, namely the Goosebumps books and the Magic Tree House books. I loved those. I remember a bunch of us going over to the Metamorphosis book series and making fun of the wacky covers. I think that was the first year that I sat down and read an entire book in a night, like an actual chaptered book. So, I have this love affair with libraries. I think they are very crucial because a lot of people, myself included, view them as a sacred quiet place. It's somewhere that anyone can go and be in a silent area with nothing but rows and rows of different worlds printed and bound into tiny hard covers. 

Can you tell that I just really love libraries?

catch you later,

Karleigh

"A room without books is like a body without a soul." // Cicero

264/365

Holy moly! We've only got 101 more days to go on here! This has been such an awesome journey and I'm so glad to have been on it with all seven of you... maybe eight. No, seriously, every time one of you reads these, whether I know about it or not, it really thrills me. Without all of you, I probably wouldn't have kept on with this, but because you have been here to read everyday, I haven't really considered giving up once.

That's a big deal for me. I really had half a mind to come on tonight and rant and rave about something that drove me crazy this past weekend, but I'm too excited about our accomplishments. Yes, they are our accomplishments, because without you guys, this would just be an online journal. 

catch you later,

Karleigh

“It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.” // Harry S. Truman

263/365

As an English major, I have to do a lot of reading. It's one of my favorite things to do really. I've always enjoyed reading, but it's hard to keep loving it sometimes when you are in school. Don't get me wrong. I really enjoy it, but sometimes I have to read things that I don't like. 

And it always surprises me how many people don't like to read, and it makes me feel a lot like they just haven't read the right book. My mom keeps a little boy and right now, his favorite book is "Go Dog Go." I've read that book to him so many times and still he wants to read it over and over again. I don't mind at all. I'll read it as many times as he wants as long as he keeps enjoying the book. It's so important to read, because it helps people be empathetic. It increases vocabulary and it inspires imagination. So if you don't like to read, try a different genre and see if maybe reading hits you differently. And even if you don't like it, reading unattractive texts is probably better for you that reading the appealing ones.

catch you later,

Karleigh

“A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies, said Jojen. The man who never reads lives only one.” // George R.R. Martin, A Dance with Dragons

262/365

Football, as I have often seen, is a very big part of the South. People get dressed up in their nicest clothes to sit outside in the sun for like two hours. I don't get it. I'm not a big football person. However, I know that it has a lot to do with identity. Often people cheer for the school that they have attended, so these teams are a part of their identity. Being from the South in itself is all about identity. We often identify with others from our area, because we have been through the same things. Our mamas say the same thing. We share a dialect. And, if I look at it this way, I can understand the obsession with football and the SEC. It's a part of who they are.

catch you later,

Karleigh

“I am a citizen of the world.” // Sylvia Beach

261/365

 It was a busy day! I promise I'll catch up  with you tomorrow.

catch you later,
Karleigh

"I find it so much easier to be creatively free at night. Daytime is for sleeping. Nighttime is the best time for making art. The later at night it gets the further into another world you go." // Mark Ryden

260/365

This week I noticed something different at my school. There were lines of t-shirts, painted with various quotes and Bible verses and they were all addressing the abuse that men, women and children face. The Clothesline Project is a project started in 1990 to address the violence against women in our country. It started as a way for women who had experienced abuse to express themselves on t-shirts, a cathartic way to help them address the issues that they had faced. Violence against people and the abuse that so many people suffer is horrifying. Every 107 seconds, someone is abused in America. That's extremely sad, for lack of a better word. I'm really proud to see, not only my university, but my peers address the abuse and violence that so many face. If you go to school with me, then I hope you made a shirt.

catch you later,

Karleigh

"Fairytales do not tell children that dragons exist. Children already know they exist. Fairytales tell them that dragons can be killed." // G.K. Chesterton

259/365

I'm really interested in creative writing. I enjoy writing and I want to take classes in it, but I'm always afraid that someone will read what I've written and let me know that it is crap and I've chosen the wrong major. I mean my major is English, but I have to specialize with something within the English department. Most people don't see English majors as creative writers. No, they see us much differently. The majority of people respond to my being an English major with: "Oh, well you look like/act like/would make a good teacher."

I do not like the idea that, to be an English major, I must end up teaching. I actually do want to teach, but that's beside the point. Do you know how many things I can do with my degree in English? A hell of a lot. I could work in publishing, editing, writing, law, and so much more. I recently thought about doing law, actually, but the group on my campus wasn't very organized and so it wasn't something that I wanted to pursue. I have thought about going into publishing, but at the end of the day I really just want to write and teach at a college. Most writers teach at universities, that's a fact. It's also a known fact that English majors tend to score higher on the LSAT, which is the test you have to take to get into law school. I told someone that recently and she had absolutely no clue. 

With the amount of time that I've been asked if I was going to teach, I feel that it's really important that you don't assume what someone is going to do with their degree. You can do anything that you want to do with nearly any degree. Don't assume that just because I'm an English major, that I'll be teaching a bunch of fourth graders how to break down sentences.

catch you later,

Karleigh

“When they asked me what I wanted to be I said I didn't know.” // Sylvia Plath, The Bell Jar 

258/365

You know how I go on and on and on about how great planners are? Yeah, well it just so happens that I am really crap at time management. I've been organizing my days by the hour and still find myself not having time to read for my classes. It's usually because I want to do other stuff instead of doing my homework. It's really hard to buckle down and commit to finishing thirty pages of reading when I could just watch Netflix instead? 

Procrastination isn't a problem for me. I work well under pressure so I don't feel bad for putting things off. Sometimes I do stuff right after it is assigned. Sometimes I don't. It depends. Now, though, I find myself not doing stuff at all. So I have my first test tomorrow and I have to buckle down. Let's hope I can memorize all of the early anthropologists and archaeologists. Trust me, there are a ton of them.

catch you later,

Karleigh

“You can't just turn on creativity like a faucet. You have to be in the right mood. What mood is that? Last-minute panic.” // Bill Watterson

257/365

Last night, Miss Georgia was chosen as our new Miss America. And like the former Miss America was remembered for sitting on the floor and playing the "cups song," our newly elected Miss America will be remembered for a ridiculous answer and leaving her mouth wide when she realized that she had won the pageant.

But I can't blame Betty, that's Miss America's name even though we won't remember it in a few weeks, for being gobsmacked over winning the title of Miss America. She should be shocked after she fumbled through her answer in the question portion. I, of course, was not a chosen judge for the Miss America pageant, but I do think that maybe the lack of finesse would have kept the crown from atop our newly named Miss America. Then again, I guess it would be hard to answer a question about the "Deflate Gate."

Congratulations Betty. I hope you enjoy your time as Miss America. And congratulations to Miss Mississippi since she was the runner up.

catch you later,
Karleigh

"There she is, Miss America..." // Bert Parks

256/365

Today, as it so happens, is my 21st birthday. When I started writing these, I never imagined I would actually make it to my birthday. I was so sure I'd give up before now. So yay for me making it this far and yay for me making it through life for twenty-one years. I'm excited to hit another big year. Hopefully there will be many more birthdays to come. 

catch you later,

Karleigh

"There are two great days in a person's life - the day we are born and the day we discover why."

// William Barclay

255/365

I think it's really important to plan ahead. I'm a big believer in writing a list and then working through it or planning stuff out on an agenda. I've been trying to adjust to a new schedule so I'm still working...

I'm sorry. I just realized that I've written about this before. I think I'm running out of stuff to say on here. Good thing we've reached the halfway point. We'll be moving down to the end. Can you believe it's nearly holiday season? Anyway, nothing new to say today. Maybe tomorrow.

catch you later,

Karleigh

mosaics are made from broken pieces but they’re still works of art and so are you // unknown

254/365

I didn't do that much today but I put you guys off until late. Let's chat tomorrow!

catch you later,

Karleigh

"But don’t ever doubt this, my steadfast conviction. My love you’re the one I want to watch the ship go down with." // Father John Misty, “I Love You, Honeybear"

253/365

I got out of class pretty early today and since I didn't have any pressing assignments, I decided to start a new show on Netflix. A few of my friends watch Criminal Minds, so I decided to give it a go too. Honestly, it's one of the most exciting shows even in the first season. Usually it takes a while to get into a television series, but not this one. I'm definitely enjoying all of the episodes that I've watched so far. So I'm going to enjoy my free time tonight and go back to watching it.

catch you later,
Karleigh

"Beware the fury of a patient man." //  John Dryden

252/365

Transferring schools is a lot harder than I, or any of my friends, had ever anticipated. You feel like your time at another college is synonymous with your time at a different college, that each of these scenarios are the same. It's not. They aren't the same; similar, yes but the same, no. And then it might be that we are older and our classes are much more intensive and require us to be on top of everything and to juggle assignments easily.

It's not easy but you can do it. Here's how:


1. Talk to someone who goes to that school and visit the campus. You have to get a feel for the place that you are about to spend two or more years of school. Try and meet with a professor in your department or college that can tell how the college works with you and find out about the resources that they offer. Be prepared to make this place your home. No one is going to make you feel like this is your home, but you.

2. Know that your schedule will probably be crap the first semester. Since you're coming in late, there won't be a ton of classes available at awesome times. It'll be little disjointed at fist, but the next semester will be here before you know it and you can create a better one.

3. Take a smaller amount of hours your first semester. It's a time to adjust and it's okay to take a smaller number of hours at first. However, make sure that you won't get behind; you need to stick to the date that you want to graduate.

4. Make the most of it. Moving schools can be scary, but you have an opportunity in a new place to do whatever you want. Join some clubs, take classes that interest you, and make an effort to meet a lot of new people. This will help you adapt more quickly and it'll keep you from sounding super sad when you call your parents between classes.

catch you later,
Karleigh

"The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time." // Thomas A. Edison

251/365

As an English major, it's kinda my job to love reading and writing. And as I love reading and writing, it's obvious that English stuff is something that I want to do for a long time. Someone asked me the other day how I could possibly enjoy writing papers or reading to write papers, to which I have to say how on Earth do you like knowing about the circulatory system or quadratic equations. Those things don't make sense to me, but they do to some people. It's all about what you like best, what you are best at and what best suits you in the long run. But since not everyone is great with literature and studying literature, we shall talk about that today. 

Okie dokie. Here's how to get ready to write a paper:

1. Get a book that you must read for class and get a copy that has been used but is still in good condition. If it's used it may already have some highlighting or scribbles, these are good things to have in your book.

2.Get your pens ready while reading the book. Mark the pages that contain things that you think might be important. I don't like highlighters for literature because highlighters don't tell me why I underlined something. I have to use pens to write in the margins -- trust me, you'll be happy about those margin scribbles later.

3. Now read that book.

4. If you have a topic that you are going to be writing about, or know what you want to write about -- for example, I am going to do one of my papers on familial relationships between Southern women -- then cater your notes to that topic.

5. After you finish the work, or multiple works, get your info together into something that will later become a paper.

6. Turn that something into a paper.

catch you later,

Karleigh

"& I said to the star : Consume me." // Virginia Woolf, The Waves

250/365

Do you know what I love? 

Planners and organizers and diaries. I love them. I think that without my planner, I'd be lost. Recently a friend of mine called me in a tiny fit about how they kept forgetting to do important things because they were caught up with other important things. Obviously, I asked if they had a planner and they did but it was too small to really delve into. After helping them find another planner, I decided to share with you guys some tips I've found from others and some of my own tips on staying organized and using your planner for more than just the first few weeks of school. 

http://the-etranger.tumblr.com

I find it very important to purchase a planner that is visually appealing, something that I'm going to enjoy carrying around to jot down all of my assignments. I also like to buy nice pens, like the Staedtler Fine Liners -- they are amazing pens and they make writing things down more fun for me. So after you buy a pretty planner and some nice pens, then you can get down to the real business of using your planner. You bought it for a reason, remember?

So I like to write down all of my classes in the blocks by their times so that I know where I should be and at what time I should be there. It helps me stay on task and not get caught up in doing too many things in such a way that I forget all of the things I have to do. And then as you go along, fill in the blanks of your planner with things you'd like to do. Plan ahead using your syllabus, school events, and the like so that you won't be surprised by a sudden quiz or something. And I always like to take a few minutes in the morning to check out the plan for my day so that I know what I've got going on and all of the things I want to accomplish during the day or week. Good luck to all of you, because it's now September and we are all back to school for a while!

catch you later,
Karleigh

“By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.” // Benjamin Franklin

249/365

Everyday I think about how nice it will be when I have an apartment - bar having to clean and pay bills and the like. I get really excited about decorating it and buying all of the things that I'll need, even though I discovered that a pot to like boil water in was fifteen dollars. Holy cow. That's a lot, I think. I've been living in a dorm for the past three years now, so I'm sorta ready to move out where I don't have to like adhere to dorm rules.

Anywho, here's how to make it worthwhile when you're living in a dorm:

1. Make peace with the fact that you and your roommate will probably not be best friends. You may start off friends and then hate each other later or vice versa; either way, you're bound to call your mom one day and complain about everything they do. Don't worry about it. You don't have to love each other.

 2. You don't need half the crap on the Bed Bath and Beyond list or on your university's list. All you really need is your personal stuff, your clothes, and some bedclothes. Everything else you can buy as you need. Don't fret over having a ton of stuff or not having anything. Just make it with what you know you're going to need right away. 

3. Meet people on your floor if you can. I'm not too bothered about this anymore, but it is nice to know the people around you especially if you share a bathroom or a common room. In general, it's nice to have somewhere else to go if you can't or don't want to go back to your dorm. 

4. Follow the rules of your dorm. If you mess up the walls or the furniture, they will make you pay a fine. Don't have to pay the fine at the end of the semester because you hung a poster up with duck tape. Don't be dumb.

5. Make the most of it. You live on campus and you don't have to pay bills. You have so many opportunities to meet people from many different backgrounds. It's a really awesome opportunity, living in the dorms. Make the most of it.

catch you later,

Karleigh

"Think of all the beauty still left around you and be happy." // Anne Frank

248/365

I have always hated plants. I've been very sickly with plants; I'm allergic to most of them so when I touch them I start itching and my eyes start running and it's a mess. However, recently I've been loving plants. I don't know if it's because we had such a nice summer or because I've been spending more time outside. So I have this new found love for plants.

Obviously this means that I bought some plants. I hit up WalMart for three succulents. One of them is jade and the other two are mysteries, but they are so pretty. And all I have to do is give them water every two weeks and make sure they get enough sunlight. So far, being a plant mom has been awesome.

catch you later,

Karleigh

“The planting of a tree, especially one of the long-living hardwood trees, is a gift which you can make to posterity at almost no cost and with almost no trouble, and if the tree takes root it will far outlive the visible effect of any of your other actions, good or evil.” // George Orwell

247/365

It's not been my day. We can talk tomorrow. 

catch you later,

Karleigh

"In a society that profits from your self doubt, liking yourself is a rebellious act.” // unknown 

246/365

 Our ribs are cages, locking away our hearts

so that we cannot chase the things we desire,

instead we must watch them from afar

wishing for the keys so that we may lock them 

in alongside us. 

catch you later,

Karleigh

"Close some doors. Not because of pride, incapacity or arrogance, but simply because they no longer lead somewhere." //  Paulo Coelho

245/365

The definitions of words are so funny to me. I've had multiple teachers talk about how we, as a society, invented the meanings of words. We have decided that glum is synonymous with sad and the same for delighted and happy. We know that those things, though perhaps varying in some degree, are fairly equal. I don't have problems with this really; I just feel like some words could be positive, despite their assumed negativity. 

Lonesome, for example, is a variation of lonely. Lonely, according to the first definition that comes up on Google, means "sad because one has no friends or company." It also can mean "without companions; solitary." In my opinion, the second definition is more fitting for lonely and, in connection, lonesome. To be lonesome is to be alone and I don't like that we associate that with sadness, meaning something bad. 

Being lonesome or lonely does not have to be bad. We think it is. When I think of lonely, I think of people in romcoms that are looking for "the one." I'm not sure where I'm going with this, but I'd like to tell people that I'm lonely without it being synonymous with me being sad. I can be lonely and not sad and I can be surrounded by companions and be sad. Why do I have to be sad when I'm alone? Why does lonely have to mean sad?

catch you later,

Karleigh

"To define is to limit." // Oscar Wilde

244/365

I read an article a while ago about how God created different genders for different purposes and that the way the world works now isn't set up with God's idea of gender. I'm not saying that the person who wrote this article is wrong by any means; however, I think maybe we are looking at gender in a way that perhaps isn't conducive to us at all. Your gender is not inherently equal to your biological sex. Gender in itself was invented by society, based on the way people are depicted in the Bible and other religious texts, to put people into certain understandable categories. We, as people, like to sort things in a way that makes it easier for us to understand them. We want to know if someone is a boy or a girl -- I'm using this argument to say that there are only two genders, which is heavily debated -- or, to rudely put it, an "it." Don't get me started on you calling someone an it. If you don't call an unborn baby an "it," then you can refrain from calling a person who doesn't fit into your boxes of gender an "it." 

I don't have an actual problem with gender, but I do have a problem with what it entails when it comes to teaching our children. I don't like the idea of boy or girl toys or ways of dress. I don't like that we teach our little boys not to cry, that they have to be tough. I don't like the idea that girls have to be mothers or care-givers. We are so much more than our genitalia. You are more than the toys you played with as a child or the clothes that you wear. Clothes, toys, other inanimate objects... they don't have a gender. 

I'm not saying that the author of that article was wrong. I don't think that world is set up to view gender the way that God intended and I believe that because God doesn't see us by our gender, but by our heart. I hope my point gets across in this. I just don't like the idea of gender very much.

catch you later,

Karleigh

There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. // Galatians 3:28 ESV