Favorite Books of the Year (so far)

As you might know, I have a very eclectic taste in books. This list is therefore, quite befitting of my overall reading style. We have adult fiction. We have young adult fantasy, we have Japanese surrealism, we have graphic novels, we have… okay, you get it. 

Anyhow, as of the end of August, I had read over 60 books in 2018 so far and I wanted to share some of the gold amidst the iron pyrite. These are in no particular order, unless the order in which they came to mind counts. It probably does say something, now that I think about it.

Autumnal Bucket List

Hello darlings,

            After months and months of waiting, the best time of the year is finally creeping up on us. A few leaves are beginning to yellow and the morning air is crisp, hitting my skin with just a hint of chill. I’m even sitting here wearing a sweater! All is finally right with the world.

            There is a special kind of magic to autumn; though I am unable to articulate it, I can feel it in the air, a calming and a buzzing excitement in co-occurrence. To honor my favorite season, I wanted to share a list of things I always do come fall. Let me know if you have any special autumnal traditions of your own.

Enchantment and Power Struggles: My Top Five Fantasy Series

As summer begins to draw to a (not quite quick enough) close, I find myself gravitating towards heavier fantasy reads. There is something deeply autumnal about the rich complexity of fantasy novels, something that invites one to pull on a heavy knit sweater and wrap one’s hands around a favorite mug, 1000 page book propped open… something heavy-lidded and drowsy that allows for the deep spiraling downwards into intricate tales of adventure and enchantment. 

Perhaps the chill autumn air carries with it a touch of magic.

Self-Care: A Daily Negotiation

Hello darling,

I used to think that self-care exclusively meant taking bubble baths and putting on face masks while wearing fuzzy pink robes. 

            Now I know that that is simply not true.

            Self-care is as diverse and multi-faceted as we are. Each person has unique ways in which to take care of their precious self. 

Perhaps more importantly though, I have come to realize that self-care looks differently for the same person on different days.

Lessons from Twenty-Three Trips Around the Sun

Hello darling,

            Today is my birthday! On this Wednesday, August 15^th, I am turning twenty-three, which means that I have officially lived through twenty-three years on this glorious planet and am launching into my twenty-fourth go-around. It also means that “22” by Taylor Swift no longer applies to me, which is sad; I felt the same way when I turned sixteen and “Fifteen” was pushed into the archives of nostalgia. 

Travel to Thailand Part 3: 15 Tips for Safety through Preparedness

Hey darling,

            As a semi-veteran traveler of Thailand, I have a few hard-learned lessons and practical tips for making it through your trip with your health intact. Please know that even though these tips make it sound as though Thailand is a scary, medically unsound place, this is not necessarily the case. I had many beautiful experiences in this country (read about them here: http://thegirlbecoming.blogspot.com/2018/07/travel-to-thailand-part-1-lessons-on_12.html). 

24 Hour Readathon Vlog (BTAT Day 1)

Grab a cup of cocoa (or if, like me, you are sweltering in this summer heat, grab a cup of lemonade with extra ice) and sit down with my day long readathon vlog! 

One (Mostly) Healed Girl’s Guide to Grief

Hello dear one,

You might be feeling numb right now.

You might be feeling like a jagged crack has broken you in two. 

                        Or you might be feeling as though your entire being is so thoroughly shattered that there is no use picking up the pieces.

I’m not going to tell you that I understand, because I know that I was always infuriated when people told me that. 

BookTubeAThon TBR 2018 & VIDEO!

Hello my dear!

I am so incredibly psyched to be participating in the BookTubeAThon this year! For those of you who haven’t been introduced to this wonderful event, it is an annual week-long readathon hosted by the lovely Ariel Bissett (https://www.youtube.com/user/ArielBissett).

Summer Bucket List: 22 Things to Do in the Sun

For the majority of my life, I lived in Alaska, the land of eternal darkness in the winter and eternal daylight in the summer. 

VIDEO: Massive Summer Book Haul!

I'm just popping in with a quick announcement for my newest YouTube video!

If you are interested in seeing me talk about my ridiculously large pile(s) of new books as much as I loved buying them, check it out below!

Some Featured Books:

• Still Life with Tornado
• The Shadow of the Wind
• Like a Mother
• Grasshopper Jungle
• ...plus a few more...okay, maybe more than a few more...

The Art of Buying Yourself Flowers: Stop Outsourcing Your Joy and Start Creating Your Own Happiness

Recently, I have found myself getting caught up in deriving my happiness from the people closest to me. 

When it works, this can be lovely. 

Travel to Thailand Part 2: One Fruit Lover's Guide to Bangkok Eateries

Hello darlings, I’m popping in today with a quick post about my favorite places to eat out in Bangkok. Bangkok as a city is many things, crowded and overrun with reckless kamikaze-esque motorbike riders for one. As a city known for its street food, there is no shortage of options as far as eating is concerned.

Kintsugi: Stronger and More Beautiful in the Broken Places

A bowl, beautiful, cyclic, whole, slips through fumbling fingers, hits the floor, breaks in two or three or seven. No longer perfect. Broken. 

A girl, beautiful, rounded, whole, slips through her loved ones’ grasping fingers, shattering on the sharp edges of her insecurities, of the world’s expectations, of the rejection of another. No longer perfect. Broken.

on being a writer who hates to write: creativity as an imperative

Hello darling, let me introduce myself.

I am a writer. This is as much an irremovable and conflict-filled facet of my identity as the tattoos I don’t like quite as much now or the fact that I was an indoor-favoring, autumn-lover raised in Alaska. I am a writer. This is me. However (there’s always a ‘but,’ isn’t there?), I typically do not enjoy the process of writing. 

40 ways to lift your mood

Hello my dear. 

            Not every day is a good day. 

Not every moment is a good moment. 

Top 5 Self-Empowerment Books for Women

Hello my dear,

There are many things that I adore in life; the short list most definitely includes reading, practicing self-care, and learning. 

Am I a Real Yogi? Musings on feelings of inadequacy and connection

Hello darling! 

Today I want to talk about yoga. Yoga has been a regular part of my life for several years now. I even have plans to take a yoga teacher training within the next year (hooray!). Despite that, I still sometimes feel… a bit like an imposter. 

Green Goddess Smoothie

Hello darling,

In my ongoing search for the fountain of youth (aka, amazing health and boundless energy, and to be entirely open, a beautiful figure), I have had serious periods of smoothie-ing.

confessions of a not-quite vegan

I have a confession to make; are you ready? Here goes…

I’m not actually vegan*.

Adopting Plant Children 101: Mental Health, Dewy Skin, and Tips for Not Killing Your New Plants

Hello my dear,

Green is the new black, at least, as far as thumbs are concerned.

Travel to Thailand Part 1: Lessons on Sunburns, Speedboats, and Compatibility

     Existing in a liminal place between graduating college and moving to a new state to start my fancy new adult life (how naïve I was), I lost hours,

          days, 

               weeks. 

     Graduation happened, then Christmas, but… What did I do with the first three weeks of January? I honestly can’t recall.

Summer Reading List

a poem, in fridge magnets

a poem, composed spontaneously in a wood-craft museum in a random town in the middle of a ten-day road trip with my ex-boyfriend turned dearest friend. oh, life.