Ur Kewl Lolz

It has been many years since the first "LOL" was used in in the world and now, TONS and TONS of little abbreviated sentences have taken over our English language. In the beginning, it was a cool, new way to send a message quicker, but now it has become old and overused. I have to be honest, however, because occasionally I will use "LOL," but I use it differently by saying, "looooooooooool." You can basically make the slang your own, but it really isn't necessary. It is like we have created another language and it is scary! For starters, when a language takes over another that usually results in a decrease of the language previously used. What is that? The use of our English language is decreasing? ...

According to Merriam-Webster.com, there are roughly 1 million words in the English language, but it is difficult to actually estimate a real number because of the use and disuse of words in our vocabulary. It is true that most of our language is barely used anymore due to shifts in culture and whatnot. If you think about it, who does say, "Abash, eurhythmic, and alsoran" anymore? Not a lot of people, I'm sure. I mean, heck. My freakin' Google Chrome spell check doesn't even understand that eurhythmic and alsoran are correctly spelled words. For your information, Spell check, those words were words of the day on dictionay.com! HA.

 ( http://www.merriam-webster.com/help/faq/total_words.htm )

I think using some slang is alright because it gives speech a little moderation, but U, Plz, Thnx...really? Is it really that hard to type, "You," "Please," and "Thanks?" To be honest, the slang versions aren't even words...they are kind of just sounds that don't have too much of a meaning to them. If you think logically on this one, they are not words. Yeah, we know what they actually mean, but come on. Th-n-x? What is that???? It looks like an ingredient on a nutrition label or something on a chemistry test -- it doesn't make any sense. 

It has come to the point where people are actually using slang in professional and academic settings. What makes it reasonable to write, "LOL" in a research paper on Moby Dick? You will probably be marked off for incorrect grammar because that is and never will be something you will see in the dictionary anytime soon or ever. Yes, being an English major has made me become very frigid towards all the slang, but I don't see why it is hard to type like we have always been! I love typing out full words because it looks so nice and complete. I'm guessing I am never going to get through to anyone with talk like that...

LIKE OMG!!!! I LUV WURDS! ENG IZ SOOOOOOOOOOO KEWL! LOL!

Just. No. 

Compare THAT to this? Yeah, there is a noticeable difference between the two "dialects."  Can we all PLEASE write like normal people??? If we all said, "Lol," instead of laughing, then wouldn't that be a bit odd? 

"AND THEN...HE FARTED!" 

-Everyone lifts their heads up to "LAWL" together in unison- 

"LOLLOLOLOLOOLOLOLOLOLOL!"

PLEASE! NOT THAT! NO!

I mean, I may already do that when I laugh, but that's different. I am just weird, but if EVERYONE did this? It would be disturbing.

So, lets communicate like real people? Cool beans.

-Tiffany

*Pictures from Google Images*
"Help." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 24 Jan. 2013.

Ellipticals are Boring

So, I'm pretty much a gym mouse. No, not a gym rat because I'm not THAT into working out there. My favorite exercise would have to be running which I prefer to do outside since it is more exciting than running in place and having to stare at the same blank wall for 30 minutes. Running makes me feel fantastic even when it feels like my lungs have shriveled up because, in the end (even when I'm about to black out), my body is in much better shape than it was 30 minutes ago. Do you get what I'm sayin'?

I resort to the sweat-infested gym only when the outside world has become a threat to my little 'ole body. For example, I live in Illinois, so the winter chill has been extraordinarily BITTER. I'd rather do my business in a room that feels like sauna than risk having my legs shatter after becoming two, long icicles. Running in the cold is absolutely exhilarating, however. Your legs go numb, your sinuses burn, and your chest stings, but you start to develop this strong determination to get out of that weather. Thus, making your run a bigger success than the end result of a run on a 90 degree day with 99.9% humidity.

A word of warning: Do not take a hot shower immediately after a cold run: You will feel like you are being seared in a fire and you will probably become very very sick. Just snuggle up in a ton of blankets, eat soup or drink tea, and wait until you are warm again.

It has been way too cold to run outside here on campus because it's been in the negatives. If you want to be that crazy chick or dude to run in any temperature, then be my guest because you will surely be a guest on the emergency room admission list. I usually try to stay away from the hospital because, for one thing, the hospital around here sucks and they take forever. I'd rather not amputate parts of my own body by myself. I might get an infection! Just kidding! I'd probably DIE. No Thanks!

Getting my jog on at the gym has definitely saved my limbs as well as my physical capabilities. College focuses more on exercising the brain than the body, so when it comes to that, you are really on your own. We are SUPPOSED to use our brains, but our bodies? Those are used to store cookies and stress. So, make your way outside or inside soon before you start hearing the ramen yell your name in the night. To make the food stop talking to me, I wake up around 7 or 8am, stretch while eating a little something with peanut butter, and speed to the gym or the sidewalk where I force myself to get the job done in about 30 minutes. Then, I come back to relax and thank myself for being such a "Jillian Michaels."

When I trot into the gym, I usually hit up the treadmill and some dumbbells afterward. Before I went today, I told myself that I would use a different machine to mix my routine up a little bit. After staring at all of the machines, trying to make up my groggy mind, I picked the elliptical  My roommate (as well as the internet) told me that the elliptical burns more calories and is not as tough on your joints as the other machines are. I picked the best looking elliptical for me and almost fell off because of how it rotates at the feet, but I managed to keep myself up there. I pressed "quick start" and I was on my way to a new cardio experience! However, this experience felt quite uncomfortable.

 As I was striding, I felt as if I looked like The Hunchback of Notre Dame. I noticed that it was because the thing was elevated up to 10! After getting everything set to a 1, I got back on a roll, my arms pumping in rhythm with my swishing feet. Then, I figured out that I couldn't move my hands. This was absolutely horrible not only because I looked like an idiot trying to grab the moving handles after letting go, but because I have to move my hands when I exercise or else I will go crazy. I knew that this was something that I had to learn to deal with, but I still couldn't. Maybe if I watch the news on the little T.V. screen in front of me, then I will forget about my hands, I thought. Yeah, it didn't help. After a few more rotations, I realized how BORING the elliptical was. Your body stays in the same movement the whole time!  It's so uncomfortable. With this, I give that machine half a star! However, it does work your body extremely well.

So, moral of the story -- Don't use boring gym equipment.

BORING>>>>

With the words of Jillian, "GET COMFORTABLE WITH BEING UNCOMFORTABLE!"
NO!
;)

-Tiffany

*Pictures from Bing.com*

Have you?

 Have you ever felt so hollow that your heartbeat feels like it is slowly disappearing?

Have you ever felt like you brain turned off without your consent?

Have you ever felt like a smile wouldn't make a difference because you're not too sure what to smile about?

Yeah, me too.




But, in the end, I guess...

*pictures from tumblr.com*

Rethinking Us

I don't know how else to say this, but I love people. I believe that we are all on this planet to share our lives with others and to grow from one another. Why else would there be about 6 billion people on our planet? There is no way to ignore others because they are everywhere we turn either on land, water, or over the Internet/media sources.We cannot throw other people away and  avoid other people because we do not like them. We are here to stay until the end of time whether we like it or not.

We can all be honest and say that we are not too fond of some people, but listen to yourself. Those people are just like you. So what if they think, dress, behave, and talk differently? So what if they are not the same pigmentation as you are or do not have the same hair texture/color as you? These things are out of our control and they are things we have to learn to accept because, in the end, we are all the same. Appreciate others for who they are even if they do not value the same things as you. We all want to be treated fairly -- who would want to be treated like they didn't matter?

Listen to your heart beat for a moment, feel your blood rush through your body like a busy highway, feel your breath fill and empty your lungs. Everyone is able to come to this moment where they feel so alive, appreciating their body for the work it has done to keep them this way. No matter who we are, we are all alive with functioning bodies and even those bodies who function less than ours are still functioning. Why should we hate these people who are alive? What makes us despise each other's function?

Loving each other will never happen over night, but it is something that everyone can think about as they lay their heads on their pillows, pretending to sleep. If you are alive with questions, then, please, ask yourself these questions I mentioned. If one so loved the world, then why hate everything in it? Hate is something we feel -- a feeling deep inside of us. The world and the people in it would be a place without hate if others did not pull their hate out of their mouths from the dark abyss of their souls.

Remember who you are, who they are, and who we are.

We will always be we and us will always be us -- not me, you, him, her, they, or them. Just us.

Feel your heart and feel your breath. Remember, we all feel the same thing for we are alive. Always.

Love because we all do and rethink hate because we all have it.

Be alive.

-Tiffany

Scomparsa a Roma

My heart burns and my feet tingle with the urge to travel. All I want to do is see what I have never seen before, so that I may fall in love with my ambitions and dreams. I'm already in love with places I have never scraped a foot against; never touched with my curious hands; and never seen so closely. Why do some of us have the urge to leave where we are? Is it the fact that we are connected to the whole world or that we are tired of sameness? Maybe, to me, it is both and to everyone else who feels the same. This planet holds such a throng of people with such diversity. All in all, we are all still human, but with variety at the same time. I've never experienced this variety in Europe before and I wish that I could. Europe is pieced together like a puzzle and yet, everyone seems to be content with that. We are all so connected with every place on this planet. For some reason, I'm so connected with Italy.

I do not know when I began this love for Italy, but I think it may have had something to do with an ex-boyfriend of mine who was half Italian. His family was brilliant and loving -- politely forcing dish after dish of heart melting food that my stomach cried out for in both lust and in warning. I guess that Christmas Eve two years ago changed my passion. The boy was all right, but I will thank him now for letting me experience his wonderful family -- a wonderful life that I soon came to dream about.

With every picture I see, Italian word that I say, and every noodle that I eat makes me cave in so deeply. How can a country in the shape of a scraggly boot make someone feel like this? It is simply preposterous! The place is mysterious to me and so exciting. For some reason, my brain becomes overly happy when thinking about Italy. This could be a case for obsession, but I would rather call it an "extreme passion." Traveling or the desire to travel is like any other hobby: it is something you do. I may have too much Italy on the mind, but it is not a crime to be excited about something that you have dreamt about. Hopefully someday I will make it there, but, in the meantime, I will write about it whenever my heart jerks by the thought of it.

Since I watched Letters to Juliet, I decided to write a poem because I've been inspired. This little poem basically sums up what I have said, but in a shorter and more poetic form. Enjoy! (P.S. No copying. This poem is MINE.)


Scomparsa a Roma

If only I could escape, then I would escape to Rome
Where time doesn't exist and the water stays warm.
Rome is where I want to be, to explore, to love.
The dateless world is my passion -- forever and more.
With Rome, I can believe more than once,
Believing in love, believing in passion
Forever and more.

"Scomparsa a Roma" means, "Disappear in Rome." This is what I want to do. I want to get lost in Rome, walk around the Colosseum, remember the history, soak in the Mediterranean sun, and wear cute sandals and Italian summer dresses as I do every single thing I talked about. It's a wonderful dream that keeps me alive when I feel like I have no light anymore. I feel human when I dream of traveling, feeling connected to the world I live upon.

I feel like a hopeless romantic, but you know what? I'm not hopeless because I AM hoping and I am romantic. I will go to the place I love the most when time tells me to. I will eat all of the flavorful pasta and authentic pizza that I can and drink refreshing drinks at little, Italian cafes while I stare at couples about to kiss with a long piece of noodle in both of their mouths. I'll hope because I can and I'll hope because it reminds me of the endless possibilities that I have.

I'm going to Italy someday and I will love it even after I leave.

Arrivederci,

Tiffany


*Pictures from Bing.com and Tumblr.com*

The Saddest Days and Moldy Bagels

I was on break for a month and now I am back in my dorm. It's been a lonely couple of days because my roommate won't be back until the end of the week and my friends are not here yet either. These days just keep getting more depressing as they go by! I can prove this statement to be true (since I have faced some sad situations). My school is a black hole into the saddest dimension. Once you enter Dekalb, the whole world turns grey and you can't differentiate yourself from the people around you.I must admit, however, that it seriously looks like England or Ireland by the lagoon after it rains. Now that is something to be happy about, and I am very content with the fact that I can run around that whenever I feel like it. Want to go to England? Okay, then get off your butt.


Back to the sad story -- it has been sad. The first day back wasn't too bad, but today was a smack in the face by sadness. For your visual entertainment, I will list the events as they occurred in play form.

THE SADDEST DAYS

BY TIFFANY CARWILE

Act 1 Scene 1

1. After bringing up a car-full amount of my belongings up 8 flights of stairs, I had to say good-bye to my mom and my baby sister.

2. I went to the financial aid office in the cold to find out that they couldn't direct me personally to the right private loan for me. 

3. While making dinner, I spilled green bean juice on my hand. 

4. I was hot last night and it's the middle of January...

End of Act 1 Scene 1

Act 1 Scene 2

1. I missed Ryan Gosling on the Today Show this morning.

2. After planning to eat a whole-wheat bagel with plain cream cheese for breakfast, I found out that it had white and green mold on it. I bought these bagels yesterday...

3. The plastic shower curtain seemed shorter width wise today and it kept sticking to my wet skin (there was a breeze or something coming from somewhere and I thought it was someone pushing into it. It scared the beejebus out of me.)

4. I thought I had more money on a gift card when I didn't, so I couldn't buy these two items I really liked.

5. I spilled my almonds on the bus, but thankfully they didn't go on the floor.

6. I've been very bored.

End of Act 1 Scene 2

Fin

I know most of the sadness is created by me, but it is still sad. I've made it up with listening to great music and doing my own Tiffany Thang. It gets better. At least I got $1.45 or so back for the bagels and I got a free package! Yay for moldy bagels!!

-TGC

**Pictures from Tumblr.com and Bing.com**

Quirk Number 8: All About Tea!

#8: There is always time for a little afternoon tea to set the day right after a busy morning.

Yes, tea. For those who do not know me, I am a tea junkie. Tea is my crack. I get high on tea and I would inject it into my veins every time I needed a fix. I'd have people worried about me as I crouch in the corner of a tea shop, my eyes red, my hands shaking from the caffeine. The shop owner would call the police and I'd get arrested for being tea-high in public. Behind bars I would clank my mug against the metal, begging the security guards to get me a tea bag and two sugars, but they would just laugh at me with pity. My cell would be an open casket and I'd slowly start eroding on the cement floor while scratching at the walls with my nails, counting down. With my last breath I would gasp, "TEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Then, I'd die.


The end.


Soooooooooo, I'm kind of addicted to tea. It is refreshing and it has antioxidants which are good for the skin as well. Most people enjoy coffee more, but coffee comes in the same color: BROWN. Brown looks like mud, poop, the spots on a giraffe, and tree bark. YUMMY.No offense, however. I do like coffee when my body yearns for it in the morning, but tea is just...better. End of story. There are so many different types of tea. There is green and herbal, but both of these come in different flavors. For example, Passion, chamomile, mint, lemon, cinnamon, Earl Grey, black, raspberry, citrus, peach, basil, pear, strawberry, white, orange, and the list keeps on going (Let's not forget Arizona and Snapple either!!). If you are someone who adores variety and freshness, then, please, drink the tea.

Tea is suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuper relaxing. I love sitting in a dim room with ether the T.V. on or off and a blanket on me while I drink a cup (or six...) of tea. At college, I drink it as much as I can because college makes me want to kill people, but tea is like a happy medication. I'm seriously kidding. I don't kill people. After a long day in class, I come home, rip open a packet of tea, and sit down to sip, sip, sip, sippp. You don't have to be a hippie, a hipster, or a rich, English person to drink it. Just warm up some water and steep. It's AMAZING. I don't know if I can stress this more, but...JUST DRINK THE TEA. Acquire your taste buds because they are in for a treat. When your taste buds are happy, you will be too. 100% GUARANTEED.

Now that you are being pressured to drink tea, what are you supposed to do????? First, go to the store. Then, pick out a box of tea (you could do this with your eyes closed. They are all yummy.) Last but not least, buy the tea and go home to drink it. Super easy and affordable. Priceless (PSH. I wish it was free...)

Yep. I totally just talked about tea. Am I the only person who would get into such a topic? Probably not, but I am one of those unique people. I hope you all can grab tea instead of coffee one day. PLUS, TEA IS A LOT CHEAPER TO BUY THAN COFFEE. A grande latte at Starbucks is about $3.50 whereas tea is about $1.50-$2.00. DRINK ON THAT!

Happy steeping!



 -TC

***Photo Cred. goes to Bing.com and Tumblr.com***

It's What You Love, So Do It.

I think we have all been to the point where everything we end up doing becomes short-lived. We get these ideas, become excited for them, and either end up doing them, but stopping or not doing them at all. This has seriously been the motto of my life since I was able to understand I had choices and opinions. To be honest, it is draining and controlling. You can't make yourself do anything because you are either frightened to try it or you are too lazy to get up. Our minds become set into this "quitting" routine, making it seem impossible to stop. This could be some sort of addiction. Now that I mention it, it's VERY terrifying. Too bad there isn't rehab for the people who can't get themselves to read books or paint. Maybe we should write to the president and ask for "Do Something Anonymous"  establishments for the people who quit everything. This is so ironic. I love it.

Looking back, if I did not quit the things I did, then I could be a gold medalist gymnast, a famous soccer player, or a better singer. Who am I now? Just a girl who writes blogs about random topics, writes a little more, paints a little, and eats a lot of chocolate. There are so many things that we can do in our lives because the list goes on and on. It is super great to know that there will ALWAYS be something you can try. I love my hobbies, but doing a little of it at a time is starting to get boring. I know that there is one SPECIAL thing that I need to be doing that will be satisfying in the end. As I put this with one of my friends last night: My hobbies are like cheese and crackers. I enjoy eating the different types of crackers and slices of cheese, but, after awhile, the bite-sized snacks become bland. What I am really waiting for is a nice, JUICY steak with a side of salad and a glass of red wine (disclaimer: this is a daydream. I'm underage.) The steak holds a mystery with its flavors and textures, it is challenging to get through, but it in the end it was all worth the wait. When I find that one hobby that combines everything that I love, then I can sit back and relax with a smile on my face that is hidden behind the rim of my wine glass. -Siggggggggggh-.

As you can tell, I'm a little impatient and sad because all I want is something that can make me extremely happy and incredibly satisfied (Yes, I did watch "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" today). I'm not sure what I truly love. Since I'm not too sure, it makes it harder for me to try things because I have simply lost interest. The simple solution would be not to overthink it all and to just do those things, but, for some reason, it's too complicated to achieve. Usually, I am here to give people advice, but this time I feel like I need someone else's advice. How do you guys come to do the things you love? What is your motivation? Determination?

There are way too many parts about life that make no sense. I guess writing does help make sense of it all in some way. If something does help you, then my advice would be to not stop doing it. No matter what. That is the underlying fact in this post. You liked doing the hobbies you did before even if you weren't good at it? Well, lets think about this one for a moment -- NEVER STOP. You will lose interest eventually, but that doesn't mean you've stopped liking it for good. Also, I believe that we sometimes forget these simple rules in our lives and the only way to refresh our memory is to remind ourselves of them. Take these last words with you and think about what it is that you love so you never forget who you are.

In the beginning of this post, I started talking about feeling regretful, guilty, and jealous. Now, I have come to the fast conclusion that it is okay to stop and start new activities  but once you find your passion, never let it go. When you define yourself, it is hard to take that definition away for it just keeps growing. Hmmm. Writing does help you solve things. You should all really try it.

Happy Saturday Night!

-Tiffany