These Monkeys are Overrated

Everyone thinks these monkeys are so cute, but I see them for what they really are: annoying, ugly pests.

Yes, their fur is cute for the first two milliseconds, but their chirping and jumping all over you annoy me. Don't these monkeys know the meaning of "personal space"?

In addition, they are not as cute as they look. Everyone fawns on them like they're little animals and super adorable, but their faces irritate me.

I HATE MONKEYS!!!

It's Official: Facebook Makes Me Feel Bored

I've finally done it. I reactivated my facebook account. I haven't gone on since late June/Early July.

I was just so frustrated with Facebook for 4 reasons:

1) No one was talking to me: It's like everyone logs onto facebook in the summer, but does nothing productive (i.e. Post lovely wall posts on my wall....)

2) I wanted to lessen my dependency on technology for staying in meaningful relationships.

3) Anyone I really cared to talk to I could talk to using alternate means (i.e. phone calls/ texting)

4) It was super boring!!!!

I caved in and reactivated it this morning. Not because I was craving cyber-relationships, but for one reason:

To make sure the guy I fancy is still single.

Yep. Your girl Sandra is a bit of a lunatic. I don't have his number, so I was counting on Facebook to start a little cyber-convo that could hopefully translate to real talk when we go back to school

I know it's totally hypocritical, but I'm desperate!

Needless to say, he's still single. Obviously holding out on me ;)

Sandra

Pilates or Yoga...or Both!

Hey, all.

Recently, I've been going through a Fitness Revolution. I've been working out well for the last two weeks. Although I am happy pounding the pavement (or conveyor belt of a treadmill), jump roping, and elliptical-ling to my heart's desire, I feel as if my fitness is one-sided.

I've steadily avoided weights (after reading that my body shape shouldn't add weights until I lose weight...irony!), but I know that strength training and cardio are just two pieces of the puzzle.

The last remaining factor is flexibility. I may be fit, but ask me to reach my right arm over my shoulder to touch my left hand and we've got problems.

As such, I've resolved that I want to start incorporating Yoga and or Pilates into my fitness regimen.

I've always hated Yoga. Ever since my gym teacher played the DVD non-stop in Body Shaping (thanks Ms. Herr!), I've been convinced that Hell is comprised of Downward Dogs and Warrior Poses. However, I cannot deny the beauty that constant Yoga does to a body. Look!

Bundchen Yoga">

In addition to giving people hot bodies, Yoga is great for flexibility. I can't wait to see what my body is capable of after STICKING to a Yoga routine.

Not only that, Yoga fanatics can make one go glassy-eyed over their descriptions of how at peace they feel when they do Yoga. And as much as I'd like to say they're on something, I can attest to that fact.

During one of my numerous dalliances with Yoga, while I was wishing my instructor death in the most horrible way for putting my very inflexible body through the thousandth Downward dog, I could not help but admit that when I stopped focusing on my rage, I felt a connection with my body. When I close my mind and focus on my breathing, my mind isn't wandering as it usually does. It is focusing on each inhale and exhale and time stops.

We'll see. Hopefully I can do both Pilates (which I don't hate at all) and Yoga at the same time. It'd be nice to start the morning off with Pilates and cool down with Yoga before bed.

Awesome body (and spiritual awareness), here I come!

Until Next Time!

Film Fridays: Marie Antoinette

This week, I watched Sofia Coppola's Marie Antionette. As seen by the title, the movie was based on the life of Marie Antionette, from her marriage to Louis XVI to the eve of her execution.

Marie Antionette is History's scapegoat and this movie does a good job of showing how helpless she really was. As a woman, she had no political power in the French court, yet she was blamed for all of France's troubles.

Likes:

-Costumes:

Have you seen the dresses? They were amazing! If there is anything historically correct about this movie, it is the dresses.

-Jason Schwartzman

He was a great King! He was perfectly awkward and endearing. He made you feel sorry for him being unable to, erm, perform. He got his key to work, eventually.

Versailles:

I love the palace and the setting for the movie. The setting was absolutely stunning.

The Camera Angles

The cinematography was exquisite. The swift shots kept you fully engaged at all times. There were really interesting angles that put the audience right alongside Marie Antoinette and all her debauchery.

The Food:

The food in the movie looked so appetizing. Half of me (okay, fine, ALL of me) wished I could just float through the screen, grab a couple pastries, then come home and stuff my face. But alas, not all dreams come true....

Dislikes

-No Accents

None of the main characters had any accents. French, Austrian, anything! It takes away from the magic of the movie.

-Casting

As much as I love Kirsten Dunst's voice, I feel that the casting of a mostly American cast in a French-specific movie was a slap in the face. The casting of French/European actors and actresses would have been refreshing and more authentic.

-Rock Music:

It was an anachronistic with the movie's history. I would've preferred some classical music or something, but the rock music was a jarring reminder of how this period piece was out of sorts of reality.

Bottom Line

This movie was entertaining, but don't expect it to give you a quick Sparknotes overview of what really went down. The cinematography was outstanding, but the best part of this movie was the display of all these events from her point of view. She is historically viewed as a selfish ice queen, but this portrayal shows her as what she was: a naive, sweet, but ill-prepared queen with no one on her side. Try ruling a kingdom with that kind of negative chi.

That's all for now. Have an awesome Friday!

Sincerely,

Sandra

Move-In Day!

Hey, all! Today, my sister Steph moved in (finally...) lol. It was rather swift and no tears were shed this time around. My parents, my sister, my little brother, Uzoh (a family friend who's like a brother to me, Steph, and Chudi) and yours truly helped move her in today.

Here's a shot of all of us as we walk to the garage to go home after dropping off Steph's stuff in her dorm.
Here we are again. :)
Here's Steph, BEFORE our 11 FLIGHTS OF STAIRS journey to Steph's new dorm room.

Here's my little brother, guarding Steph's stuff like a real G.

This is all Steph took with her to college. All she took was a suitcase, matress set, her lacrosse stick, Boris the Panda, and some shoes. Like she always says, "Minimalism is in." I should keep that in mind when I'm bringing my whole house with me to move in next month.

Watching Steph settle in was refreshing! Not that I won't miss her, but her leaving usually signals that my departures is not too far off. As much as I love hanging out here at home, I yearn for the city. For dorm life. For people my age. For good-looking collegiate men.

Oh, well. It's only 24 days from now, but who's counting? ;)

Sincerely,

Sandra

I Want It All

Hey, all.

I was just listening to Nickelodeon's Big Time Rush. It's a show that features 4 young men who create a pop band. Initially, they were wary about the pop-star lifestyle and were all convinced they all wanted different things. Little did they know that deep down, they all loved music and they truly enjoy following their dreams.

Cheesy antics aside, this show is a good way of showing kids what they are getting into when they say they want to be stars. It also instills good values that you don't see often in Hollywood: loyalty, hard work, and genuineness.

In between commercials, there was a couple "Behind the Scenes" look at the REAL band, Big Time Rush. It filled me with pride, watching these 4 fulfilling their dreams. They are gambling everything (their privacy, anonymity, time, future) for a shot at stardom-- and they're succeeding.

Listening to their theme song, there were generic words like "never quit, make it big, make it real, make it count, play it straight" etc. The one that got me was:

"Come on, shake it up/What you gotta lose...If you want it all, lay it on the line/It's the only life you've got/so you gotta live it big time."

These Nickelodeon pop tarts are right! I can't get what I want by wishing.

Time to stop wishing on a star (here's looking at you, Cinderella, Pinocchio, Sleeping Beauty, and Snow White) and start working on my dream (like Princess Tiana).

See y'all. I gotta get to work ;)

Until Next Time,

Sandra

Spring/Summer Cleaning!

I started cleaning my massive pile of organized school junk and I saw my special folder where I kept all my college booklets. I'd been obsessing over college since I was in elementary school (my elementary school teacher reminded me about a time when I cried about a B on a test, thinking "it would affect my application to Stanford")


It just makes me nostalgic for those days when the world was my oyster. Although I am in no way unhappy with my current school, I still kinda wonder what could've been if I'd changed my high school experience. What if I spent a little bit more time studying for my SAT/ACT instead of playing sports? Would those extra hours of watching the news helped me relate to my interviewers?


Most importantly, the main question I have is: Could I have gotten into an Ivy League like I always dreamed if I had worked just a LITTLE bit harder?


I guess we'll never know. I just have to make this Public Ivy help me forget about those silly East Coast schools. But UCLA's no consolation prize anyway ;)