a hiatus

      One of the advantages of having literally no one that regularly keeps up with blog is not worrying too much about constantly updating it. I've been incredible busy lately - I'm in my junior year of school, so studying and schoolwork have consumed many of my hours, and it's paying off...sort of. Despite the constant stress, I am getting my homework done and I have found that, fortunately, I am one of those few who can function normally on around six hours of sleep. Or is it just the adrenaline? I'll never know. I do want to try to keep updating this blog, though, since it's fun and helps me channel my creativity and organize my life a bit. Since autumn soccer is over (bittersweet), I just need a new memory card for my camera and a way to sort out my time better...

     A few weeks ago I stumbled upon this interesting piece about Ivy League Schools, and it was, well, interesting. It helped me view the American Education System a little differently. 

"Don't Send Your Kid to the Ivy League" by William Deresiewicz

While explaining the cons of Ivy League schools, Deresiewcz also points out the amount of injustice and inequality that America displays through its education system. He concludes: We recognize that free, quality K–12 education is a right of citizenship. We also need to recognize—as we once did and as many countries still do—that the same is true of higher education. We have tried aristocracy. We have tried meritocracy. Now it’s time to try democracy.

     While I understand Deresiewicz's viewpoint, this is also rather controversial and debatable. He supported his final statement incredibly well, but a problem does remain: different people have different capabilities. In his conclusion, Deresiewcz seems to assume that everyone is equally capable of great intellect and education, but unfortunately, this is not true. There are different kinds of intelligence: mathematical, artistic, pragmatic, philosophical, etc. Everyone has their own unique manner of thought and abilities; however, assuming that we are all in fact equal in terms of ability is erroneous and even detrimental to American society. It can lead to conformism, and if we force everyone to learn the same things at the same rate and in the same way, then there will be no leaders, no people who are stronger and more capable that can take charge. As a result, American society will not be able improve. Human beings will not be motivated or allowed to be successful.  Equality is a great idea, but it cannot be enforced on society to the point where the society stops improving. We need stronger, smarter, and more capable people who can take lead. As a result, better schools of learning are required to hone the skills of those who are more capable. Nonetheless, Deresiewcz's essay is excellent and makes some important points. I support many forms of equality, but equality to the point where nothing is better or worse sounds like a terrible idea, and even dystopian. 

     

a little springtime inspiration on polyvore ft. American Apparel

here's a set I recently put together for spring!! I'd say it's really inspired by American Apparel and what they post on Instagram - they have perfect clothes

You can check me out on Polyvore! 

I remember buying and wearing their high waisted shorts a while back, and while I've now outgrown them, they were literally a great fit and they went with basically everything. I loved wearing them!! Definitely going to buy myself a new pair soon...

so its finally spring

Literally counting down the days until summer - I miss it so much!! :( No school, total freedom, ice cream, and shorts... what's not to love? A few flashbacks, thanks to Instagram -

Smoothies!!

On the flight to Oregon - flying on airplanes is one of my favorite things to do

Arial view of California - I plan to visit LA or San Francisco someday...

Bubble tea, in Portland, OR!! Personally, I don't think it's that great, the "bubbles" were kind of gross. Or maybe that's just the store??

Anyway, I don't actually post on here that often, partly because I'm too lazy and my life is boring and I can't get online that often because of school... only 73 more days until it's over for me (haha yes I'm literally counting down the days)

going out to eat tonight holla

   So I'm going out to the Cheesecake Factory to eat with a few friends, and I saw it as an opportunity to  go rummaging through my closet for a few dresses!! I found this adorable one from a while ago that I had never really gotten the chance to wear until tonight!!

For some reason the quality came out weird in this one...

...And yes that is a map of the solar system from my phase where I was obsessed with outer space (I still kind of am)

Anyway, tomorrow is Monday :( I still have quite a bit of studying to get done before the chaos that is tomorrow. I hope anyone reading this has a fab week!! 

How Artsy

   I'm obsessed with Emmi's sketches right now - her art is so interesting! You can find her at http://emmiriikka.tumblr.com/

This is such a cute series of sketches by Emmi, and relatable as well. I've tried drawing, and some say that I'm actually quite good at it, but art is too frustrating and I'm too much of a perfectionist to stick to it... oh well

Oops ft. Style Inspiration

   School and family and life in general has kept me from updating this blog recently, but anyway I plan to make more of an effort to consistently make posts on it. Although I love love love clothes and fashion and all that jazz, school and family always come first, however, it has paid off! Yesterday, I scored 96% on my AP biology class test, which gave me an extremely satisfying feeling.

   Anyway, I had to post about how obsessed I am with Rebecca of The Clothes Horse!! She runs such an amazing blog and I literally adore her style so much.

This was her most recent post - she has a great taste in books!

This was taken with her boyfriend, and they make the most adorable couple 

So basically, I idolize her style. Her pictures and outfits remind me of poetry and she is so pretty and nice too. I remember messaging her a little while ago and she replied with incredibly helpful advice. I hope she continues posting for a while; I don't know what I would do without her and her blog!

it takes three sheep to make a sweater

   The days are really getting colder!! Anyway, I found this sweater in the back of my closet and decided to use it for a Thanksgiving party that I'm going to this evening!

I love how well this jacket keeps me warm!! It's pretty chilly here in New England, especially in late November through March...

My favorite pair of shoes!! They go with most things that I wear, and I use them for school. 

Outfit details:

Sweater is old, but similar is here

Similar jacket is here

Oxford shirt

Shorts

Tights

The shoes that I'm wearing are out of stock, but similar ones can be found here

What Makes Me Happy

   I've been on 8tracks often, which is a website that allows you to put together your own playlist from whatever songs. I came across and really liked this one playlist in particular, and the person who put it together literally has the same music taste as me. I love all of these songs, and they have this similar type of style to all of them that attracts me to them. You can view it here.

This is the cover art for the playlist! 

Happy Thanksgiving!!

   So, today is Thanksgiving, which basically is the day when I tell myself "This will be the Thanksgiving where I don't overeat this year" but instead I, well, overeat. No regrets!!
    I think that everyone has something to be thankful for this year — for me, it’s my family and friends, and the love I share with so many people. I'm so thankful that I am surrounded by so many people who are consistently there for me, through thin and thick. The past few years have been full of change for me - I moved, I got older, I got rid of some insecurities and formed some new ones... I found out who my real friends were. Honestly, I think of every year as a kind of stepping stone, and each time I take a step, there is something new and beautiful to be taken into my heart. I grew a lot over the past years, both as a person and who I am inside. Compared to three or two years ago, I am a much more confident and happy person. 
   Anyway, happy thanksgiving, acknowledge what you’re thankful for and be thankful for that all year round — not just today. I hope you are all surrounded by your loved ones today. After all, the greatest gift that we have is to love and be loved.

A Midfall Night's Play

   A few weeks ago, as a required part of my school curriculum, I took part in my sophomore class play,  A Midsummer Night's Dream. For the most part, all went well, with the exception of Oberon forgetting a few of his lines. I loved the set, some of the students in my class had worked hard on it, and all the props involved in the scenes and setting came out well! We made mushrooms (that looked like lamps at first, but the coloring changed that), trees on panels, which one of my teachers decided to paint a donkey head on...(it was painted over - crisis averted!), and trees adorned with Christmas lights. Although the stage was quite simple, it stimulated the audience's imaginations well enough so that they could catch, through the setting, the mystical and dreamy aspects of the play.
  I also loved the costumes, hair, and makeup. One of my friends did a wonderful job creating a crown braid out of my ridiculously long and thick hair, as seen below...

Also, we had some amazing freshmen who came in and did face paint for our fairies, so that they had this very cool and mystical paint around their eyes. Unfortunately, I don't have pictures of the results, but they looked something like these -

So basically, very interesting. I honestly just loved doing the play. The mystical aspects of it were so fun to work with, and I hope that next year I'll get to do a play as fun!

((Insert Original First Post Title Here))

   Although I'm still a tad confused on how to use Blogspot, I think I might be getting the hang of it. Hopefully by the time I'm 80, I will know everything...

   Anyway, I'm Ellie, I'm 15 and I like fashion, books, photography, and music. I run a separate blog on Tumblr, http://rivur.tumblr.com/. Anyway, speaking of music, in particular, I really love the Arctic Monkey's new album that came out a few months ago, AM. They have fab songs, and I love how they have rock'n'roll roots mixed with a more modern pop style. My favorite of their new songs is "Do I Wanna Know?"