Jenna Marbles is not my friend

The first time I ever saw a Jenna Marbles video, I was in high school, and my friend Maria and I watched "How to avoid talking to people you don't want to talk to." We thought that was the funniest thing we'd ever seen and proceeded to binge watch all of her videos and show her to any of our friends that would watch. That was 5 years ago.

I spend A LOT of time on Youtube. I mostly watch vlogs, skits, and an occasional gaming channel.

Jenna Marbles is not my friend, but sometimes it feels like she is. 
She loves her dogs, she changes her hair on a constant basis, and she always takes everything one step further than anyone else (if you need evidence of this, check out her Highlighter Makeup Video). Her current channel has been up for 6 years, but she was making videos before that as well. I have watched her get pets, go through breakups, move across the country, and grow into the person she is now.

Following someone's life on Youtube is kind of like having a pen pal that you never write back to, but they keep writing anyway.

I have also really enjoyed watching Julien Solomita's vlog channel over the last few years. (That's Jenna's boyfriend if you didn't know). I think part of why I have enjoyed his videos so much, is because not only is he around this person I already feel like I know, but he is doing what I want to do in life, which is making quality videos for people (plus he's really good at it).

These two Youtubers have been particularly inspirational to me. Julien reminds me to reach for the things I want and to be proud of what I make, and Jenna reminds me that being me, even if that means being weird, is okay and that following my dreams will be worth it. Even though I've never met them in person, they have a significant impact on my life. I've watched them at least twice a week for the past few years, how could they not be characters in my story?

Mr. Mouse in my House

Houston, we have a problem.

There is currently a tiny, adorable pest living in my house. I don't know how he got in, but he hasn't been paying his rent, so he needs to go.

Yesterday I was minding my own business, watching TV and folding laundry, when I saw a grey blob dash across the floor. As my head whipped around toward it, I became very alert. I quietly got up and tip-toed towards the movement. The grey blob scurried from underneath the dining room table, squeezing into a small hole next to the dishwasher, that I am now hyper-aware of.

Meet Mr. Mouse:
Mr. Mouse is about the length of my index finger (I have very small hands), grey, with a pink nose, and thin whiskers. He is very shy, and only comes out if you sit very still for a long time.

Mice don't particularly scare me, I'm not worried that he'll bite me or anything like that. However, I really don't want him wandering through my belongings or eating my cereal. He is definitely making me paranoid though, I don't like not knowing where he is. He pops up when he is least expected, so every time I enter a room I take a good look around and poke at any place he could be hiding.

Today I am going to get a catch-and-release trap and set it up, then we'll find Mr. Mouse a new home in a field somewhere. I think he'll like it better than my house anyway.

My Little Sister is Growing Up

Ashley is a bright-eyed, optimistic college freshman. She loves the Beatles and vintage appliances and she spends waaaaaay too much time in Target. She laughs easily and whole-heartedly. We are yoga buddies, we go shopping together, we work together, and we're always borrowing each others' clothes. Despite being very close, we are vastly different people.  She is always quick with a smile and has better shoes than me. She wears more dresses and less makeup. She likes to be around and help people, which is probably why she wants to be a nurse.

Three weeks ago Ashley moved out of our parents' house. I was surprised to find that I was more worried about her than I thought I would be. I remember how excited I was when that day came for me and even though everything wasn't always perfect, it taught me so much about life. I loved having more independence and responsibility, which is part of the reason I was so surprised to find myself worried about her. Of course, I was excited for her too, but the worry crept in around the edges.

Would she make friends? Keep up with classes? Meet boys? Party too much? How often would I hear from her? Or see her? What if she got too busy for me? Would she tell me if she wasn't okay?


I'm so used to her living at home with my parents, that it's weird for me to think about her being somewhere else. Maybe this is how moms feel when their kids move out. I find that more than any feeling, what I feel is a need to be there for her, and I don't know the best way to do that. I'm watching her grow into her own person, and I want to be a part of that person's life.

These last few weeks have been different, but still the same. I've found comfort in some of the things that have stayed the same. We still have an active group chat, filled with cute things that Mom does or funny pictures. We still see each other every Sunday for lunch and send snapchats when we're bored.

Even though Ashley and I are different in a lot of ways, I know that we both have a good head on our shoulders and are both down-to-earth. As I watch her grow into her own person, I will try to enjoy this time in our lives, while we're both in college, before we are fully-fledged adults.

A Brand New Blog

Many blogs that I see are centered around the person writing it, simply because you write about what you know. When I went to create this blog, I thought about making it about my everyday experiences, and in a sense I will be, but that idea just seemed too... boring, or plain, or unexciting. My story isn't anything new, and I don't quite know where I'm going or what I'm doing yet. I suppose it would make for a perfectly fine blog, but it just felt a bit off to me. I wanted to do something different.

So instead of focusing on me, this blog is going to focus on the people around me, my family, my friends, strangers I bump into on the street, or anyone else I encounter. I'll do my best to take a broad look at the people and situations I write about and see what kind of an effect they have on me. If I end up writing about negative experiences (not sure how many of those I'm planning on doing) then I'll leave names/IDs out of it.

Maybe by writing about others, I'll learn a little bit about myself in the process.