Just a heads up for my friends who read this...

I am going to participate in NaBloPoMo this coming month. I figure it can get a couple of my goals out of the way on my 101 1001 list. I THINK I have an idea of what I'm going to blog about, especially after seeing the theme for April (which I'll stick very loosely to I guess).

So yeah, that's it. I have to get back to doing homework and getting some artwork done before my English class tonight. D:<

~Sara

43. Go For A Week Without Eating Sugar (Part 2)

I...I MADE IT? A WEEK? WITHOUT SUGAR? 

Wow, I am seriously shocked. I MADE IT. I didn't have one bite of processed sugar for a week and it was...exhausting, man, seriously. I admit, this morning since the thing was over I caved and ate some chocolate covered edamame beans but yanno, I think this was a good thing to do. I think I can resist the urge to eat processed sugar now. I can definitely eat healthier for sure, especially after seeing that literally just after a week of eating this way, I dropped a lot of water weight. :0

Even within the first week I felt so much better once I got over the PMS-y feelings that came with not eating the processed sugars. It was psychological I swear. I even almost started crying on the street for no good reason whatsoever. WTF? Scary crap, man, scary crap.

Temptation was hard to resist, especially at college life--free ice cream at the housing fair, soda at the movie nights, friends going "omnomnom chocolate", etc. I seriously was ready to smack some of them upside the head, to be honest. -___-;;

But for all the friends I got mad at, there were the awesome ones who were supportive of me. Thanks guys. Here I am a week later and I feel like, that YES, I can eat healthier now.

Next food challenge in the coming months? The bread/pasta one, or at least I'll try to. I told one of my friends that I'd help her by participating in Passover with her. Good luck to us, methinks. :B

~Sara

19. Write a list of 25 lessons I have learned in my life.

Because a rational perspective is always good, I'm gonna compose a list of 25 things I have learned in my life (no, learning to tie my shoes doesn't count). 

25 Things Sara Has Learned In Life

1. Appreciate your life everyday. You never know how much longer you'll be around.

2. It's okay to deviate from what everyone else does.

3. It's okay to open up to others, just be careful what you open up to them about.

4. Bottling things up is never fine. 

5. If you want something, go for it, unless it is a guy, then you let him do 90% of the work.

6. Going stag to prom isn't the end of the world.

7. Figure out what your friends are and what they aren't.

8. Your parents are two of the most important people in your life, even when you're having an episode of teen angst. Treasure them.

9. Don't put yourself in the middle of a problem, even if you mean well.

10. White lies are the worst lies you can make because you never regret them later.

11. There are always stranger people than you out there, even if you are the crazy cat lady.

12. Life is ironic.

13. Things always happen for a reason, even if they aren't obvious at time.

14. Growing up never seems like a gradual thing because one day it hits you in the face and you realize "OH CRAP I GREW UP".

15.  Follow your gut. It's the only thing that leads to a correct decision every time.

16a. You don't just share your heart with your significant other. You share it with your friends...

16b. ...not only this, but you share one half of your memories with everyone else.

17. It's the little moments that are the best--the time you chilled with your friends eating pizza way too late at night, getting lost in the department store, the smile from across the room.

18. When you are angry, the best thing to do is go off and be alone for a bit.

19. Your childhood doesn't end when you reach puberty. It ends the minute you realize that you have changed and that you can't go back to what you were.

20. You never fully appreciate what you had until it's many years later and you realized what you missed out on.

21.  You can only change to be a better person when you can learn to laugh at life.

22. Don't worry too much about the drama in your life now, because years from now you'll probably laugh at the ridiculous feeling of it all.

23. Everyone has something they can do. If you don't think this is true, it's probably because you haven't found your calling yet. 

24. Everyone makes a difference, no matter how trivial they think their actions might seem. 

25. You might have different religious beliefs from everyone else, but none of the titles really matter because you all believe in the same thing: the well-being of mankind.

20. Write a list of 25 things that I appreciate about myself.

Because increasing my self esteem is something I want to do over the next three years while I'm in art school, I have decided that I need to give myself a pat on the back for a change. Without going into detail, I have a lot of baggage that I tend to hide from 99.9% of the world that I've been hiding since middle school and continue to hide from most people.  As a result...I could be happier with myself.

Well, no time like the present:

25 Things Sara Appreciates About Herself 

1. I am well adjusted despite the crap I've gone through in the past.

2. I am not overly mature, but I know when I need to act it.

3. I am brave enough to pursue my dreams here in Boston. :]

4. I am independent.

5. I can sit back and realize what I have in front of me and what I don't.

6. I love the little hazel strip in my left eye.

7. I am finally proud to be extremely pale.

8. I think if I worked at it I could really be talented. I draw, paint, belly dance, write and if I actually try I can sing okay.

9. I am starting to be able to recognize when I am in a bad situation...

10. ...and I am able to pull myself out of them.

11. I can admit when I am wrong.

12. I try to live my life the way I want to and not by what others think.

13. While I would love to find a soulmate, I don't need a boyfriend to be happy.

14. I know what I want.

15. I am determined in nearly anything that I do.

16. Compared to some people, I am actually a pretty rounded person. I have a good variety of interests, unlike people who are simply like "OMG SPORTZ". 

17. I am smart.  

18. I have awesome hair.

19. I am not swayed by the media or public perception of me. 

20. I am not as shy as I was when I was younger.

21. I can actually talk now! 

22. I can workaround the fact that I a) had a speech impediment that still affects me occasionally, b) have a learning disability that makes it hard for me to deal with numbers and c) already have a shy personality...I left school on honor roll, even with a class in accounting. :]

23. I am an organized person when I want to be. 

24. I always want to know more about the world around me.

25. That I got the bollocks to write up this list.

43. Go For A Week Without Eating Sugar (Part I)

Today, folks, is the start of a new life...or at least a VERY difficult challenge! XD 

I have decided to get one of the hardest things I've wanted to do done, which is to go a week without eating processed sugar. The natural stuff in fruit=fine, but soda and other things=hard. You see these things so much in college. I don't usually eat them, but I do feel like I haven't been abstaining as much as I would like to, so I'm avoiding the stuff completely for a week to break the cycle. It's gonna be tough stuff. I am a chocoholic. That says enough.

So, today, is day 1, obviously. I WAS gonna start Saturday but then I remembered that I was at a sleepover and that we would be likely to eat processed sugar so that was a no go. ._____.;;; 

Today though...WISH ME LUCK! I'm going to need it.

97. Put a Dream Catcher Up In My Room

Soooo, I grabbed my dream catcher from my old bedroom back in NH. I know it sounds silly to some, but having it around really does make me feel better. I swear it actually works for me. My dreams just seem to have so much better omens and to have more clarity when I have one around.

Something tells me I should probably start another one of my goals within a couple of weeks, which is to write in a dream journal everyday for a month. I've written in a dream journal in the past, but I've never really made it all that consistent...which is odd, I guess, but then again I have pretty weird dreams, like:

*Danny Elfman was a knight and he failed at rescuing the princess (AKA me, of course) because he was thwarted by a Gerard Butler look alike.

*I was getting married to one of my guy friends (who I didn't know I was getting married to) and got into a fight with my mom over the wedding dress.

* I was one a bus\train vehicle that was going to Boston and it broke down after everyone gave their tickets away, so the conductor was like "hey, here's a refund". This was AFTER I had gotten into a fight with one of my friends over texting my crush. XDDD

Maybe my memory will improve if I attempt to keep up the dream recollection? 

~Sara

41. Go To Trader Joe's

Sooooo, I ended up finishing one of my more minor goals for 101 1001 today. 

I, Sara, went into a Trader Joe's for the first time in my life?

Does the goal sound ridiculous to most? Yes, yes it does. However, I am a New Hampshire citizen. We don't HAVE any Trader Joe's where I lived. I hadn't even heard of Trader Joe's until I came down to school in MA! It wasn't until one of my friends showed up one day with Trader Joe's cookies to split with everyone had I even heard of them--and damn were there good!

Every other week, my friends would keep discussing Trader Joe's and every other week we would try to make plans to go, but couldn't because of our schedules, leaving me Trader Joe-less.

Well THAT changed today, folks. (haha) True, the sales clerk was kind of a prick and I just bought dried blueberries and some chocolate covered edamame and peanut butter cups to bring home to my brother and mum, but hey, it's SOMETHING!

That's one less thing I have to try in my life! 

Oh yeah, did I mention I picked up paperwork for my semester in Florida today? I even started writing my statement of purpose already! >D

Next up...I have to face NH on my spring break. Oh dang.

~Sara

21. 25 Things I Look For In Guys

As part of a way to re-organize my brain after dealing with a certain guy-related situation, I've decided that as a way to keep myself put together, I am going to make a list of 25 things I look for in a guy so that I at least won't make the same mistakes that I've made in the past AGAIN.

25 Things Sara Looks For In Guys:

1. He must be older than me. THIS IS NOT DEBATABLE!

2. He must know what he wants in life. I do not want a guy who is indecisive about his career/schooling/anything. It goes against everything that I am.

3. He must be taller than me, because I hate to sound shallow, but I would feel weird dating a guy who was my height or shorter than me.

4. I want someone who can depend on me when he needs me, but isn't clingy. I would hope that he'd expect the same of me.

5. I want someone who is intelligent. I don't expect Einstein genius, but I don't want someone who equates the word "yeah, dude" to a fleshed out conversation.

6. I want someone who is not afraid to take life head on. 

7. I NEED a guy who is clear in what he wants. Some things in life are meant to be black and white.

8. I deserve a guy who doesn't keep telling me "I'm sorry that I can't date you", but might be thinking "but I sure do love your taste in guys".

9. I value my mom's opinion. If she thinks you're a douchebag, then 99% of the time you must really be a douchebag because she doesn't say that about many people.

10. A guy doesn't have to like the same exact things I do, (like Broadway), but don't be rude to me about liking those things.

11. This one should be obvious, but a guy who takes my feelings into consideration. Don't do or tell me things that could be construed as flirting when you have clearly stated that you don't like me that way. DUH. 

12. I need a guy who sees what he has in front of him. Usually people are luckier than they think.

13. I don't care how busy a guy is. He calls me at least once a week. Communication is important in a relationship!

14. I want someone who is compassionate. He doesn't have to feel every little thing that goes on inside my head, but I want him to at least listen and try to understand why I might feel the way that I do.

15. Someone who is into the city life. I love the city myself and I want to settle there, so any guy who is in the same mindset with me makes my life easier.

16. Trust me and I'll trust you. I want someone who has my back.

17. Once again, the whole mindset thing--I'm an Atheist. I don't expect you to have the same beliefs, but don't try bashing yours into my skull. It's just a big turn off.

18. If I can tell you just exactly how I feel, then you probably have me hooked. I am a very shy person and tend to close my feelings off from most people, so when I am honest like that, it is a big deal to me.

19. Taking #18 into consideration, don't blab about these things to other people, not even as "my friend felt this way". 

Time for the shallow part of the list! :D

20. Long hands/long fingers. 

21.  I prefer blue/green eyes, but any eyes do it for me if they are pretty enough.

22. Brunettes

23. NO ACTORS! I've learned my lesson with that one already.

24. ...Artists on the other hand...

25. No need for uber-muscles, but take care of yourself (like eating right, exercising, etc.). It shows that you are happy and confident with yourself. :]

~Sara

101 1001 List

1. Get an A average for one semester at school. [0/1]

2. Learn more Parkour

3. Lose 20 pounds [0/20]

4. Keep said 20 pounds off (unless it's muscle, then it's fine)

5. Post in a dream journal for a whole month. [0/30]

6. Participate in NaBloPoMo. [1/1] [April 2009]

7.  Get rid of items at home that are clogging up space.

8. Tell the five most important people in my life that I love them and why. [0/5]

9.  Spend a semester in Florida or California through the semester away program at school. [0/1]

10. Have a mother and daughter day at the spa with my mum. [0/1]

11. Post a blog every day for a month. [30/30] started April 1~FINISHED April 30

12. Start up a website to promote my artwork and use as a portfolio. [0/1]

13. Get an internship in the video game industry. [0/1]

14. Set up a meditation schedule of at least 30 minutes a week.

15.  Send something to PostSecret. [0/1]

16. Abstain from eating meat for a week. [0/7]

17.  Start picking up yoga.

18.  Learn how to cook 20 different foreign recipes. [0/20]

19. Write a list of 25 lessons I have learned in my life. [3/22/09]

20. Write a list of 25 things that I appreciate about myself. [3/18/09]

21. Write a list of 25 things that I am looking for in a guy. [3/4/09]

22. Go to Saint Gaudens back in NH.

23. Do 26 Things and post it on this blog.

24. Do ten drawings with a focus on architecture/environment. [4/10]

25. Read The Secret.

26. Read Watchmen.

27. Re-read The Kite Runner.

28. Go five days without Facebook. [0/5]

29. Go five days without IM. [0/5]

30.  Become more confident when talking in front of crowds.

31. Spend another week in NYC. [0/7]

32. Spend another week in Seattle [0/7]

33.  Donate blood.

34. Have a Lord of the Rings marathon.

35. Fill up my "in-character" journal for my character Eileen.

36. Finalize Fareed's character design.

37. Make some landscape drawings for Eileen's story.

38. Make a film depicting Eileen's story.

39. Sit on a rooftop.

40. Write fiction everyday for a month. [0/30]

41. Go to a Trader Joe's (we don't have them in NH). [3/5/09]

42.  Eat sea salt ice cream.

43.  Go a week without chocolate or any form of sugar that's not in fruit/juice. [7/7] [started 3/16/09~ FINISHED 3/23/09]

44. Donate clothing to the Salvation Army.

45. Write a letter to my mum and mail it to her.

46. Get a psychic reading done and find out my "past lives".

47. Study the Wiccan religion, if just to find out what other people think of the world.

48. Write a letter to my dad.

49. Make plans with three possible people that I can room with off-campus. [2/3]

50. Get an apartment down in Boston.

51. Write a fan letter to Neil Patrick Harris. [0/1] (Optional is that I get his autograph, but knowing celebrities' schedules I'm not putting it on the official list.)

52. Do a series of photos at the Powerhouse Mall of at least ten different photos. [0/10]

53. Start drinking more water again.

54. Take at least ten photos around Greensboro, VT. [0/10]

55. Pay for all three of us (three of us being myself, my mom and my brother) at least one time when we go out to eat. [0/1]

56. Set up an account Etsy.com.

57. Sell five things on Etsy.com [0/5].

58. Give surprise "just because I care presents" to my mom and brother. [0/2]

59. Go a whole day without swearing. [6/1/2009]

60. Get a new cell phone. [5/6/09]

61. Grow my hair down to my shoulders.

62.  Go to Salem, MA.

63. Activate the new debit card back in NH. [3/7/09]

64. Go a whole month without buying anything except essentials (food, medical related things, etc.)

65. Tell my ex to stop staring at me.

66. Go to the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. [0/1]

67. Write a song. [0/1]

68. Take a theater related class at school. [0/1]

69. Take a creative writing class at school. [0/1]

70.  Buy myself a bouquet of flowers. [0/1]

71. Buy my friends a bouquet of flowers. [????]

72. Go to the movie theater by myself. [0/1]

73. Walk from school in Cambridge all the way over into Boston. [1/1] [DONE 4/24/2009, from Lesley University to the Prudential Center]

74. Make an internet mini-series consisting of five episodes. [0/5] (CURRENTLY IN CONCEPTUAL STAGE)

75. Buy a coach purse. [0/1]

76. Buy Mirror's Edge. [0/1]

77. Buy my own PS3 so that I don't have to share with my bro when we both move out of the house completely. [0/1]

78. Get attuned to Reiki. [0/1]

79. Try tarot cards.

80. Set up a more consistent weekly time for belly dance practice.

81. The above with Parkour.

82. Edit a Wikipedia on a topic I'm familiar with. [0/1]

83. Make a birthday cake and frosting completely from scratch.

84. Feng shui my dorm room. [0/1]

85. Get a hot pot so that I can stop mooching off of my room mate's. [0/1]

86. Get a full set of dishes (plates, silverware, glasses) for when I move out of the dorms.

87. Get a full set of pots and pans for when I move out of the dorms, including a cutting board.

88. Set up a schedule for when I have to start paying off my college loans.

89. Complete four pieces of work for the Canson Contest at school. [4/4] [last piece finished 3/17/09]

90. Submit said pieces of above work for above contest. [3/18/09]

91. Make my own ice cream.

92. No bread or pasta for two weeks. [0/14]

93. Read Twilight. (and ONLY the first book. NOT the other two.) [0/1]

94. Apply for every scholarship I am eligible for in 2009. 

95. Get a job over the summer in 2009 with at least 30 hours a week.

96. Save $$$ over the summer to go towards tuition payments. [IN PROGRESS]

97. Put a dream catcher up in my dorm room. [3/15/09]

98. Learn basic German.

99. Learn basic Korean.

100. Take French classes at school.

101. Get this list posted! [3/4/09]

3/4/09: 100% of the list is now posted! Accomplished goals will be in bold-italics with the date, as well as ongoing goals/goals in progress.

Hello, world

Hello, world!

Sooooo, truth be told, I actually just started this blog in order to participate in 101 1001. I don't see why I couldn't use it though, especially if I get something along the lines of "post in a blog everyday" (which would be impossible for me because I don't have internet at home--I'm actually at school right now).

This is all you people need to know:

Name: Sara

Occupation: Art Student (going for BFA in Animation)

Interests/Loves: Drawing, Painting, Video Games, Belly Dancing, Writing, Parkour, Kayaking, Comics, Voice Acting (although I'm terrible at it XD)

Favorite Music includes: Gorillaz, Broadway music, Meat Loaf, Nickelback, David Cook, Oingo Boingo, Carlos Santana, Sigur Ros, Rihanna--definitely not limited to those though XDDD;;;

Yup, that's all you need to know...until I get started on 101 1001. >D

Catch you on the upside,

~Sara