I love this image, because it describes what summer should be like so well: relaxing on a hammock, wearing a pretty swimsuit, and being surrounded by pretty plants. Tomorrow, I'm finally going swimming (if the weather's alright) and tanning at the pool with one of my best friends.

via song of style

I WANT A CAMERA. I have absolutely no photos of my own, and I think I should be able to display my outfits and images and everything on this blog. Which one should I get? I don't know crap about cameras, so I'm always lost whenever my friends talk about E30s or DSLs or whatever the heck it is.

1. Leica M9

2. Diana Mini

3. Lomo LC-A 

photos via google images!

via people.com

It's been more than a week since my last post! Life here's been...well kind of prosaic, to use an SAT word. I've been taking hagwon classes so far, and it's been okay, except for the tiresome traveling by subway every morning. Most of the people are a few grades older than me, but that's okay. It's been way better than I expected. I've even found a mutual friend of someone I used to know. I've seen close to ten friends/acquaintances so far, but I'm hoping to see much more. Everyone's exactly the same, and I'm guessing that they don't think that I've changed dramatically, either. A few of my friends have either drifted apart or are mad at each other, but I'm still so glad about how excited (jovial) everyone's been about me being here!

We're staying at my cousins' house here in Seoul, and although it's uncomfortable, it's miles better than the random apartment that we were primarily planning to stay at. The amount I'm walking each day is incomparable to what I was doing in Arizona, but I'm not getting any fitter (that's the word I'm using to replace 'skinnier'). I'm probably going to seoul club on thursday, so I'll see even more people, and more people will see me. Ugh... I have so much homework and vocabulary to go through, it's insane. I wish I could keep up with blogging, but my endless procrastination is virtually uncontrollable.

nd I'm still awake, surfing through tumblr and looking for things to post and reblog. My sister and I are leaving in just three hours, though we haven't even fully packed yet. All I have left is packing some extra books (the lovely bones, the catcher in the rye, the book thief etc.), take a shower, dress, then we're ready to leave for the airport. We're flying from here to SF, then to SEOUL! :) I couldn't be more excited about going there than I am now. It's been so long since I've seen or talked to my best friends, and reading the "can't wait to see you" messages on facebook makes me even more anxious to go there as soon as possible.

One thing I'm both interested in and nervous about is taking SAT PREP hagwon classes every weekday for a month. It's been forever since I've been to hagwon, and I definitely haven't done anything like this before. I really hope I can be a better writer after taking the class.Even though I shouldn't be worried about anything 'cause it's summer, I have so many questions and concerns about going back to school this fall. I don't know which one to go to! If only I could stay in Korea... Repeating the grade might be an idea too, since my GPA is insanely low. Probably lower than all of my friends. It's all because of procrastination. It's hurt my grades, happiness, and relationships. It hasn't only been this year, but for maybe three years since middle school. I just can't seem to break this horrible habit.

 I've always liked photos of details and notes!

 

Ugh, my writing has absolutely no flow. I'm seriously considering taking multiple writing classes at the community college nearby in the fall. My blog posts are completely random and I write about whatever that just comes to my mind. Whatever. Maybe that could be a good thing. I originally began this blog as a place in which I could write things mainly about beauty, health, fashion etc, but I guess it can also be a journal.

Here of some things that I'm bringing onto the airplane so I don't get bored:
BOOKS: The Lovely Bones
                The Catcher in The Rye
                One Hundred Years of Solitude
                The Perks of Being a Wallflower
                The Book Thief
FOOD: peach-o's
             gummy worms
             cheetos
             cookies

iPod
PAPER + PENCILS
MAGAZINES (SELF, teenvogue, seventeen)
SUDOKU (i'm a dork!)

pictures via theblondesalad

via yahoo shine, instyle

I have to pack RIGHT NOW. I won't be home for most of the day, so it'll really suck if I don't get to it now and have to stuff everything into the suitcase in a short amount of time. I like to take my time and plan everything carefully! Needless to say, I'll have to start right now if I want to finish before Sunday. We'll be there for more than a month so I need to bring a ton of clothes, shoes, bags, and makeup with me. Plus, I need to bring books and papers with me since I'm taking a hagwon class everyday. I'm planning to buy a lot of the things while I'm there, especially the clothes, cause the ones I have now are very bleh, and I can't wait to go shopping!

PACKING LIST:
7 t-shirts
3 tank tops
3 sweaters
4 dresses
3 pairs of jeans
4 pairs of shorts
1 skirt
1 pair of leggings
1 leather jacket
1 pair of leather boots
1 pair of converses
1 pair of sandals
1 pair of flip flops
1 pair of flats
3 bags
2 hats
3 swimsuits
underwear
jewelry
makeup
books

I tend to under-most of the time, so I may need to add more things to the suitcase. I'll definitely go shopping as soon as I can to avoid wearing outfits over and over again. I really like packing, but I always do it on the last minute :( I MUST STOP PROCRASTINATING!!!
Being late and procrastination - these are my worst habits, and I really need to stop doing them.

Tomorrow's not only the last day here at home, but it's also my little sister's dance recital! I'm really excited to see it because the girls there are really really good, including her. There's just one main thing that's bugging me about this. So there's three different times and performances tomorrow: one in the morning, afternoon, and evening, and my grandpa's telling me to go to all three of them. It's definitely not that I don't want to go to them, but I'll have to stay there for hours and hours and hours... I understand that he wants to support her the entire time, but he's kinda on my nerves sometimes. Since yesterday noon I've spent almost all my time at my cousins' house. I regret doing that. I've been swimming a little bit, but that was while I was being dragged and pushed around by my little cousins. I should have stayed at home and relaxed, spending my time well. Not only that, I think I tend to overeat whenever I go to their house. I ate SO MUCH while I was there. Obviously, my plan to be fitter and healthier (and skinnier) is not going the way I planned. I did get to tan a little, but that's about it. As for my hair, I think I'll just curl it whenever I need it like that. Hopefully, I may be able to get a perm or something in Korea.

I always liked art, but until recently, I'd never thought about pursuing a career in art. I gained an interesting in painting during the art classes this past week, and my one of my favorite channels ever is HGTV. I love seeing the transformation of a room with the use of color and patterns, and I think it's so interesting that design can have such a huge impact on the way we view things. Almost everything that we consume and buy in the modern world involves elements of design: electronics, architecture, interiors, clothing, books... I don't even have to list any of these things because as I said before, EVERYTHING involves design.It would be super cool and interesting to pursue a career in interior design, and maybe have my own show on HGTV. I could be like David Bromstad, last year's Design Star winner, and host of Color Splash, which I love. That's kind of a dream of mine. I would design and transform living spaces, and do some painting too.
My room right now is a complete mess. My mom wants me to clean it before we leave for Korea, so I think this is a good chance to do some decorating and organizing at the same time. This is how my room looks right now:

As you can see, it's really messy and my stuff is everywhere.

Now, onto the designing part of this. My room is very, very boring. I can't remember ever not having white walls in my bedroom, so I would be so happy to paint my room. I think I would probably paint it with a light bluish/purpleish-grey, and keep the white lining on the floor. As for the furniture, I would add a bedside table, a new lamp, perhaps a new chair, and an irregular fluffy shag rug under my desk and bed. I really like the shelf and desk set I got when we moved in here, though. I don't know if I would be allowed, but I really wish I could take the blinds off of the window and put a pretty curtain in its place. Oh, I would also put up some picture frames, of course.  The one you can see in the upper-right hand corner was actually drawn by moi! It was my final for the art course I took at the community college nearby, and I completed it the night-morning right before I was supposed to turn it in. It took forever to decide what to do, but I finally settled on a clock and some abstract numbers all over the place. It's supposed to symbolize my on-going battles with time-management. My mom had the frame custom-made at Michael's, and it's gorgeous. She was that proud of me! I'll probably replace the art itself with a painting or something, because I only spent a few hours on that one. 

I just finished watching David Bromstad's show "Color Splash in Miami". Not only is he good-looking, he's a great designer and an amazing artist. Here is some bedroom design inspiration from HGTV:

I'll post the 'after' photo after I'm done decorating and cleaning a little bit. I'll gradually change it up a bit and post my room-makeover-journey! 

I don't go on youtube that often, but once I find something or someone I really like, I watch the videos all the time, almost obsessively. My new obsession is "The Style Diet", a channel that features Anna Saccone. She talks about a lot of things, including fashion, beauty, health, and organization. I've always known about her, but I never actually tuned in to her videos. Most of them are very helpful and her style is simple and chic. They accompany my summer makeover plans really well too.

Here she is giving advice about wearing different necklaces:


She shows how she gets really pretty curls with a straightener. I really want this kind of hair!

So, I'm leaving for Seoul in exactly a week! Although I'm super excited, I'm also kind of worried about what people will think about me when they see me a year later. Will they think, "wow, she's gorgeous!", or "eh, nothing different about her", or worse: "ew, what happened to her?!". I'm pretty sure the last one doesn't apply, but I'm worried nonetheless. Because of all these worries I'm having, I decided to come up with a plan to give myself a little makeover in only one week. I want to look prettier and hotter, fitter, more stylish, smarter, and most of all, more confident. It all sounds superficial, but I really, really want to have a great 'second' impression with everyone I know. The easiest part will be the physical changes, but the hardest will be improving my personality. Working to be more confident is the most important because I usually lack confidence and courage, but I hope this summer will be a good opportunity for doing that.

What else am I doing this summer? I've already volunteered a few times at the public library, taken a week-long drawing and painting class, and read a few books. When I go to Korea, I'll be taking SAT reading and writing at a hakwon and maybe doing tennis or yoga. And of course, I'll be catching up with people. I can't wait to see my best friends and spend as much time as possible with them! We'll have sleepovers, go swimming, shopping, talk, watch movies...I've never been more excited this whole entire year. I'm going to promise myself to become a better person this summer, and build up different skills and hobbies. I'll learn a few songs by ear on my guitar and piano, read some classics, paint a few pictures, and learn some new vocabulary.

During this next week, I'll be doing something different each day for my makeover. These are the main things I need to work on: exercise, makeup, clothes, tanning, hair, and of course packing for my month-long vacation. After Korea, we're going to Abu Dhabi so I'll need A LOT of things. I hope I spend this summer really well and hopefully, this week will be worth the hard work!