i. People praise rainy days but they just give me an achy head and a depressed feeling in the pit of my stomach. I combat them the only way I know: putting white sheets on the bed and filling as many jars with green as I can (but I may or may not take advantage of my already-blue mood to listen to sad songs).

ii. I find myself taking pleasure in the way the bed sheets are a white mass of crinkled valleys and hills in the mornings. My parents probably just think it's an excuse to not make my bed.

iii. (it's kinda true)

iv. Having a restless soul is both a blessing and a curse.

v. I wonder why people act the worst to the people they love most.

vi. My emotions are too fickle for my taste. I read books so I can live in somebody else's mind for awhile.

vii. I'm tired of all those false promises and I want to start doing things instead of only talking about them and this post is as disjointed as I feel. I have no pretty words left in me.

ps I'm sorry I take everything so seriously. I should probably be glad we don't have more rainy days.

Bubbles, sweltering heat, and tan-comparing competitions...sounds about right for a southern summer. The other night we had a block party here in the neighborhood and the neighbors pulled out glow in the dark bubbles. Yes, they're real, and yes, it was every bit as marvelous as it sounds. We had fun that night. Big giant bubbles are cool too, though. Here's a recipe if you want to make some of your own:

gather
- 2 cups Joy brand dish soap
- 1 cup corn syrup
- 6 cups water
- wire hangers, if desired

make
Mix dish soap, corn syrup, and water together. Fashion the wire hangers into any shape your bubble-blowing-loving self desires.
--
Have fun, kids. I'm off before that gif gives me epilepsy.

John Green is one of those people that makes me think. I read his book, "Paper Towns," a few months ago, and as usual, I can't stop thinking about it. You know what's sobering? The realization that the majority of the people I interact with/pass on the street every day are just paper cutouts walking around, opinions based only on appearance. It's not until one takes the time to get to know someone--really know them, to find out what makes their clocks tick and their hearts beat faster--that a person stops being paper and transforms into something three dimensional. The thought that so many people will slip right out of my life just as easily as they slipped in is a sobering one. Not that I particularly care how others perceive me, but on the street, I'm just as papery as the next.

But enough of this or I'll just start going around in circles. I guess that's the sort of thing that happens to me after being thrust into new experiences. A new internship at the Chamber of Commerce has been keeping me busy and getting me very well acquainted with downtown. Because I'm a photography intern, I get to go to all these fancy schmancy events and embarrass myself, but at least I have a camera to hide behind ;) In all seriousness, though, it's been very interesting so far and makes me really proud to see all the things this city of mine is involved in.

And besides the Chamber, well, it's just been a lot of life. Here, I'll make a list of the good and the bad (and the ugly? ;)) for you.

BAD:

taking the ACT
making decisions about college
finishing too many good books
how quickly everyone (including myself) is growing up
brother being away from home for a week

GOOD:

a robin named Wally rescued and tamed by certain little sisters
swimming (and everything that comes along with it like new swimsuits and tans and freckles and bleached hair)
the constant stream of adopted little sisters flowing through the house
summer block party
said brother returning home from camp
falafels, or, heaven on earth
bicycling and blueberries and books (THUMBS UP FOR ALLITERATION)

There's more in each category but let's be real, I'm too lazy to write it all out. ;)

Hope your summer has been fantastic so far!

Love,
Carlotta

ava grace and faith.
may 2013.
what a beautiful pair they are.