Six Months

Tuesday was my half birthday. That means in 6 months I'll be 25.

The last time I mentioned that I was having a minor freakout about turning 25 I got a lot of feedback. So many of you said you felt the same way that I'm feeling, which was pretty reassuring. However, so many of you also said that you couldn't explain the feeling and approximately zero of you offered any kind of assistance on dealing with this feeling. Thanks a load.

Every time I come to this space to write about those pesky feelings, I end up not being able to get my thoughts organized enough for a post. Which has led to me struggling with this whole blogging thing. I haven't been commenting, I haven't been replying to comments very well, I haven't been bringing my A game, and it's making me feel bad.

I need to take a step back.
…And I might need a reality check.

Here's the thing, I've been doing some soul searching, which has been about a ridiculous as it sounds. I think my biggest issue with my 25th birthday isn't about it being some huge milestone or being another year older. I think my biggest issue is that I'm terrified my 25th birthday will be an exact copy of my 24th birthday.

I'm worried that I'll be in the same place in my life, a whole year later. Almost as if I wasted a year of my life. 

Yea, that sentence above this one has got me totally and completely flipping my shit.

So Happy Thursday.
I'm sorry if you came here for some jokes and some sarcastic humor. I'm fresh out.
Tomorrow, tomorrow I'll be funny again.
And next week I'll be a better blogger again - replying to comments, writing quality posts, commenting on your blogs. I'll do better, I'll be better.

And in six months I'll be 25. Cue the hyperventilating.

21 Days? I Accept That Challenge.

My friend, my sister, and I started the 21 day fix yesterday. It's been a quick minute since I've talked about anything health related, so I've decided today it is!

First I should mention that we're kind of doing a modified 21 Day Fix. Mostly because we're all cheap and poor and didn't but the actual "kit". So we don't have the pretty colored containers and we don't have the Shakeology.

We found almost everything we needed on Pinterest. The few things we didn't find we copied from the 21 Day Fix book of someone else that we knew. I'm probably not supposed to tell you that, but whatever. Don't buy the "kit" unless you want Shakeology (i've actually heard great things about this), then you might as well. Otherwise, all of that info is online somewhere, for free. #TipsFromKay

Crash Course On 21 Day Fix
To explain it quickly - You first figure out your calorie count for each day, then you use their chart to figure out how many containers of each color you eat in a day. The colors coordinate with a food group.
Green - Veggies
Purple - Fruit
Red - Protein
Yellow - Starches/Carbs
Blue - Cheeses, Avocados, Nuts, Coconut, Hummus, and more
Orange - Dressings and Seeds
Tablespoons - Oils and stuff

All of those containers are also equal to measurements, such as 1 cup, 3/4 cup, 1/2 cup, etc. etc.

Day 1 Thoughts?
Yesterday was a smidge difficult. I wasn't prepared very well because I had forgotten until Sunday afternoon that we were starting on Monday. That caused a few problems because I didn't have time to go to the store so I had to use what I had to make the 1st day work.

There's quite a bit of prep work involved too. Mostly figuring out exactly what you're going to eat and when for an entire day so that you eat all of your containers and only those containers.

Yesterday taught me that I absolutely have to find ways to eat a Green container for breakfast. I didn't yesterday and I ended up have to eat 3 Green containers for dinner, plus 1 Red, plus 1 Yellow. I totally forgot about my Blue container yesterday. Poor planning.

Yesterday also taught me that I'm going to want to eat more in the morning and during the day. I didn't finish my dinner because I was so full. It just felt like a lot of food. I'm definitely eating a lot more right now than I usually do.

Modifications
I mentioned already that none of us are using Shakeology. There isn't some hidden reason in this, we are just really broke and didn't want to pay for it. In the 21 Day Fix program they have you replace one of your Red containers (protein) with the Shakeology. My friend is using another kind of protein powder, shake thing. I'm not sure what my sister is doing. I originally was going to just eat a protein instead. Yesterday I had cottage cheese where I would've had a protein shake. However, because I felt like I was eating so much yesterday and I was so full, I decided to experiment with a few different protein shakes. I'll keep you updated.

Why I Chose 21 Day Fix
I don't do fad diets and I never have. I've never wanted to waste my time losing and gaining the same 7lbs and I've always wanted it to be a lifestyle change. I honestly think this 21 Day Fix is totally different, here's why - During the 21 days, I'm going to be eating things I usually eat and things I like! I've been trying for over a year to eat clean, but that's usually easier said than done. During these 21 days, I'm going to be forced to do just that. It takes 21 days to form a habit, that's no coincidence.

This isn't some diet where I'm eating eggs 4x a day or completely cutting out carbs or no dairy or anything. This is a 21 day plan that forces me to eat the way I've been trying to eat for over a year. Lots of veggies, lots of protein, little sugar, etc. etc. Things I already wanted to do. #LifestyleChange

I will definitely be keeping you guys updated on this. I'm so, so very curious to see how this goes and I'm sure you guys are too! Or maybe I just like to think you are.. Either way, I'm clearly not getting paid or perked for doing this, so you can bet your bottom dollar I'll be honest with you guys about these next 21 days.. Well, 20 days now.

Ps. Today is my half birthday, which means I'm halfway to 25 and totally NOT freaking out about it. Nope, definitely not freaking out. No freaking out here…. Obviously.

Sharing Some Internet Love

I spend a lot of time on the internet. Coming from a blogger that shouldn't be that big of a revelation, but lately I've spent quite a bit of time on YouTube, which is a new thing.

Back in the day, and by that I mean about 2 or 3 years ago, my friends and I used to spend a lot of time on YouTube together watching funny videos and quoting them every time we went to the bars. Yea, we were those girls. We were in love and obsessed with Jimmy Tatro, back when he only had 10 videos on his channel. We're OG fans.

Anyway, we eventually got to the point that we only watched Jimmy's videos, so we were only on YouTube once a week when he posted a new one. Well recently I discovered Joe Santagato and his old channel SantagatoTV, which I have mentioned a few times on here. Discovering his YouTube channel led to my discovery of a few other channels and a few other videos and this has all led to me spending too much dang time on the internet.

Mostly, I watched a lot of stupid things. Some of these people on YouTube.. Good grief, they need to just not. BUT I've found a couple of hidden gems and I'm going to share some of them with you today!

I'm a St. Louis Cardinals fan and I don't pretend to like the New York Yankees, at all. But damnit, I like Derek Jeter. I always have. This ad is spectacularly done - and I don't use the word spectacularly lightly. Such a beautifully done "tip of the hat" to a great baseball player and great man. If your a sports fan at all, then I think you understand my feelings, especially if you're a baseball fan. At the very end of the ad, the music fades out and all you can hear are people chanting "Der-ek Je-ter *clap clap clapclapclap*" and it kills me every time. Every. Single. Time. #RE2PECT

Unless you live in a cave, then you know that the official 50 Shades of Grey trailer was released last week. This video seems appropriate in light of that. I laughed very, very hard. Ellen is amazing.

I found this because it was actually one of those annoying ads that plays before a YouTube video will play. Those are so annoying, but I actually love this one! A little woman empowerment never hurt anyone, right?! I love the message in this ad and it also felt like a little slap in the face, because I say "sorry" quite a bit.

The link to this video was tweeted out last night by someone I follow and I just happened to click on it on accident. Then the video started playing before I could stop it and once it started I just kept listening. Excellent cover of this song and with the acoustic touch! I don't know anything about this girl, but this video is definitely worth a listen!!

Dude. So basically this couple plays pranks on each other, constantly. Awe, 21st century true love. But really, these two are hysterical. The video above is just their channel's trailer, so you'll have to click on their channel to watch some of the pranks, but you should do that. They're hilarious.

I'd be doing you all a great disservice if I didn't include a Jimmy Tatro video. I can't possibly recommend enough that you click around his channel and watch some of his older videos, but this is his newest one and it's hilarious. It's a parody of The Purge: Anarchy movie that just came out and it's worth a click. A big click.


Now tonight I'm going to sit outside and read a book or something. I need less internet in my life.. Until tomorrow of course, when I'll be back here. Which reminds me - I posted my own YouTube video on Friday. You can hear my lovely Indiana accent, etc. etc. You can watch it.. Or not, whichever.

My Indiana Accent {VLOG}

Friday, Friday, gotta get down on Friday!

I sincerely hope that you now have that Rebecca Black song stuck in your head.. Because it's stuck in mine.

Alright, let's do the damn thing..
Guess what, I did another vlog. Yesterday I was sent a set of questions to do in a video to let people hear your accent and I thought it'd be funny. So last night at midnight I decided last minute that I was going to film it and post it today. Here ya, kids.

^^dat screen grab doe.. ^^

Here's the link to watch it directly on YouTube, which I recommend.

I hope your ears didn't bleed too much and I hope you have a wonderful weekend! I'll see you guys on Monday!

Dating & Being Single

Something interesting happened yesterday evening and I have this burning need to share it with you guys. I almost became the girl I tell my friends to avoid becoming. 

Did you follow that?

I really need to throw some back story at you first. Back in March, I had a date or two with a guy, we'll call him Jordan. When Jordan asked me out, he was on his A GAME. I truly mean that, he did everything right and I was thinking "holy shit, this guy is not for real". I even called my mom and my sister to tell them about this guy and our upcoming date, which I never do.

So we went on 2 dates, back to back. A Thursday night and Friday night. By the end of Friday night, I knew I wasn't that into it. There were some personality traits of his that really bothered me and I was putting a lot of pressure on myself to try to get over those because I so badly wanted it to work. He started off so well that I didn't want that to go to waste. However, it just wasn't going to happen.

Don't get me wrong, he was and I'm sure still is a very, very nice guy. He was just a nice guy who wasn't for me. When I told my mom about it and talked to her about it later she thought I was being too hard on him and too critical.

Was she right? Yea, she probably was. I stood by my decisions though because if we're realistically talking about someone I want to potentially spend the rest of my life with, then yes, I'm going to be critical and only I can decide if something is a "deal-breaker" or if it's something I can get over.

And you guys, I felt like I was kicking a puppy when I told him I didn't want to see him anymore. He was like a poor, defenseless puppy and I felt like an uber bitch. It took him a little while to get the hint and he even texted me a few times weeks and then months later. I always chose not to respond, because I didn't, in any way, want to lead him on. Poor, defenseless puppy Jordan.

Fast forward to last night. I was reading articles on Elite Daily trying to find some blog material. They have a whole section on their website on Dating and I clicked it and started reading. 2 hours later and about a hundred articles I was having an internal battle with myself. On one hand I was feeling pretty good, thinking "hey, being single is awesome" and then on the other hand I'm thinking "I'll be alone forever". It was making my emotions all jacked up.

I've been on dates since Jordan and I've "talked" to guys since him too. Which, what the fuck does that even mean anymore?

"Yea, Mark and I are like talking now, so like things are like getting pretty serious." 

But last night I started second guessing myself. Did I judge Jordan too harshly? Were those things that bothered me really that bad? Doesn't he deserve a second chance? If I texted him do you think he'd text me back? Should I text him?

Then I slapped myself in the dang face. My friends do shit like that a lot and I'm always the first person to tell them to go with their gut and to not go back and settle just because they're lonely. That shit drives me crazy and I've seen it backfire on my friends SO OFTEN. Do you know who is usually the one there to pick them up and help them? Me.

Jordan was not right for me. I knew that then and I know that now. I need to trust myself and my judgment. I also need to remember the leaps and bonds I'm come in the last 2 years.

I'm happier than I've ever been.
I feel better than I've ever felt.
Do I still have stresses and shitty things going on sometimes? Yea. But having a boyfriend, especially one just to waste time until "the one", isn't going to make those stresses and shitty things better.

Where my single girls at? Love your life. Be confident in yourself and in your choices. Be happy. Life is so, so good.

What Kind Of Cheese Am I? And Other Burning Questions..

Alright, alright, alriiiiiight..

Uh quick side note before I actually start this post - If you don't know the movie the above line came from, well it'd be a lot cooler if you did. (p.s. that was your 2nd hint)

Anyway, lately I've noticed a lot of new faces in my comments and on my Twitter and I've never in the history of TBOI really done an "About Me" post. Mostly because I think those can be really boring. Sorry, but usually they drag on and on a little bit. Like honestly, who gives a hoot what my favorite color and my favorite animal are?

But I've gotten a lot of questions, usually the same ones over and over, and I have so many new faces that we're gonna do a quick and painless and probably hilarious GET TO KNOW ME post. First up..

FAQ (also known as Frequently Asked Questions)

Q: Why does Allie call you Kristen? -or- Why does your email say Kristen?
A: This is one of my most popular questions and I get it at least once a week. First, Allie has read my blog for a long time and way back in August 2013 I wrote a post about secrets and I told everyone that SURPRISE, my name isn't actually Kay. It's Kristen. Allie has always remembered that and has mentioned it a couple times on her blog.

To go into it a little more than I did in that post, basically in junior high a girl moved to my school and her name was also Kristen and we became friends and our whole group of friends always had to call us by our first and last name so we wouldn't get confused. In high school people started calling us nicknames and then strictly by our last names. Eventually my friends started calling me "KStoll" pronounced "Kay-Stoll". One year I needed a pen name for an English assignment and ended up using "Kay Stoll" because it was the spelled out version of my nickname "KStoll" and it just kind of stuck around. A lot of my friends still call me KStoll.

Also, the other Kristen and I ended up having our high school graduation party together and she's still my best friend and her pug Shooter is my first nephew and I'm obsessed with him. So how bout them apples?

Q: What is going on with your family? It's confusing.
A: I've actually already answered this. HERE. But I'll review it again really quickly - My mom and my dad had me and my younger sister then they divorced. My mom remarried and now I have a stepdad, who had 2 sons from his previous marriage. They are my stepbrothers and are both older than me. Then my mom and stepdad had another boy, so he's technically my half brother, but we don't use that term, ever. My dad never remarried. That's pretty much the answer. It's only ever confusing because sometimes I call myself the oldest child and sometimes I call myself the middle child and yea, I understand the confusion. For cool graphs and a better explanation click here.

Q: Who in your real life knows about your blog?
A: Well, that's a good question. My mom, my stepdad, and my aunt read every post, that I know for sure. My sister knows I have a blog, but my sister has a huge aversion to reading in general, so I'm not sure if she's ever read a post. Some of my mom's friends know (HEY MARION!) and most of my close friends know, but I'm not sure how often any of them read this. I don't really blame them, they have like lives and shit.

However, I don't know who else knows? I did recently discover that someone I went to high school with has found my blog and has read some of it. That's always fun. Actually, I really like her, so it's no big deal, but that kind of opened my eyes that maybe other people read this and I just don't know it? Shoutout to those people.

Plot Twist!

Now is the part of the post where I answer some questions that were submitted to me.

Q: Anonymous asked: Gay marriage? Yay or Nay?
A: Truthfully and bluntly, I think we have a lot more problems going on in our world than whether or not a man marries a man or a woman marries a woman. Truthfully and bluntly, my male neighbor's marriage to a man doesn't effect my life in any shape, way, or form. Truthfully and bluntly, I think there are a lot worse things you could be than a lesbian. Truthfully and bluntly, I believe the bible is an interpretation of God's word and everyone can interpret those words differently.

Oh and "it's human rights for everybody, there is no difference."
"No freedom 'til we're equal.. Damn right I support it."

Q: Katie asked: Meanest thing you've ever done to your sibling?
A: HAHAH, probably the time when we were really young and I put a puzzle piece between my knuckles, with the pointy edge sticking out, and punched my sister in the leg. No clue why, but she cried. I don't actually remember getting in trouble for that though..

Q: Laura asked: How did your parents give you the sex talk?
A: When I was in 3rd grade there were all of these commercials on TV that would start with one person saying "Are you going to talk to your child about sex?" and then in sequence a bunch of people would say "Because I will" and then "I will", "I will", "I will". They were weird commercials. Anyway I very distinctly remember laying on my mom's bed with her and that commercial came on and then after it was over I just straight up asked her about sex and then she told me. I think because my mom didn't make it a big deal and some big production, I never thought of it as a big deal or anything. She answered my question and that was that. I went back to watching Mary Kate and Ashley or something.

I also don't remember exactly what she said, but knowing my mom I'm pretty certain she didn't use some stupid analogy like birds and bees or anything. I'm sure she said the P word and the V word (i don't want to type them because then those search terms will lead people to my blog and i'll be spammed like a mofo) and told me exactly how it happened in pretty plain, average terms. That's my mom. No sugarcoating, just straight up facts.

Q: Brit asked: First boyfriend?
A: I'm assuming I'm supposed to talk about my first boyfriend? So okay.. I don't think elementary school boyfriends count, so let's jump to 8th grade. I dated a boy named Blake and "our song" was this..

#TrueLife. Also I broke up with him and then he wrote me a poem about his heartbreak and how much he loved me and how he wanted me back and I still have it. I read it once a week for a confidence booster.

Q: Sam asked: What was your worst autocorrect fail?
A: Well, I don't know if this is necessarily the worst, but it's the one that we STILL talk about all the time. I was talking to my bff about some guy she hooked up, who I affectionatally referred to as "FratDouche". And this happened..

No semen. None with FratDouche. Ever. None. And yea, we still talk about this autocorrect all the time because we think it's hilarious and I'm sure none of you guys will.. So there's that.
Ps. That was when I had my Android and I suffered from #AndroidProbs every. single. day.

Q: Alison asked: If you had to pick a cheese to represent you, what cheese would you pick and why?
A: This is my favorite question in all the land. Here's the deal, I've just spent the last 45 minutes attempting to answer this question. No lie. I did a quick Google search of cheese types and you know what happens during a Google search.. One thing leads to another which leads to another and then I landed on THIS golden nugget. I read through all of their descriptions for the different cheeses twice and I've decided I'm probably American Cheese because it says:

You are sweet, but you might not have ever left your hometown. You definitely love grilled cheese sandwiches and cartoons. OH, you might be nine -- are you nine?

Which is obviously my life.

So I hope you guys learned a little bit more about me. Obviously these were the burning questions you guys wanted to know. Feel free to ask some more awesomely fun questions and I'll answer them another time.

Autobots, roll out.

If Target Is The Devil, Then I'm Going To Hell

Way back in April when I wrote 36 of the best blog post ideas ever, I was in a blogging rut. I was drowning in tax season and it wasn't quite Spring yet, so I was suffering some serious winter blues. A lot of those post ideas were ideas I actually wanted to use. I was writing them for myself and just sharing them with you guys. Then I suddenly got inspired or something and didn't use any of those prompts and kind of let all of those good ideas go to waste.

But on Friday I wrote a shopping list before I went to Target.

Because honestly, who leaves Target with only the things they intended to get? It's hard as shit (ew, gross visual) and I was determined to not spend extra money. So.. List.

You'll never believe it, but I left Target on Friday with only things on my list. Actually, I ended up NOT getting several things on my list because I couldn't find exactly what I wanted and I'm being a tightwad with my dolla dolla bills right now.

When I got home I remembered that one of my blog prompts was to "find your last Target receipt and post what you bought". Boom.
And in a weird turn of events, this post ended up telling you guys a lot about me. So.. You're welcome?

>> Toilet paper. Here's something weird - I only buy this brand of toilet paper. Back in 2009 I had to buy this once and I decided it's my favorite kind and I've only ever bought it since. So if you're ever at my apartment? This is what you'll be wiping your butt with. Holla.
>> St. Ives spray lotion in Coconut Milk & Orchid (the best kind, ever). So, I saw a sponsored blog post about this a while back and I'm the sucker who decided to try it. Yep, hooked. I love this stuff and I especially, ESPECIALLY love this scent. It's the bomb.com. I will say though, that it doesn't seem to last very long, but that could also be because I use it more often than I use regular lotion. It's hard to tell.

>> Razor blades. Usually I'm more of a disposable razor kind of girl, but I got one of these razors free with something else I bought before I went to Florida and wow, loved it. So again, I'm a huge sucker and they hooked me and now I'm buying the replacement razor blades. Ugh, marketing geniuses.
>> New toothbrushes. Listen, I change my toothbrush every other month or any time it's been traveling, it's time for a new one. Way on back in 2008 I saw a TV show that explained how freaking disgusting our bathrooms and toothbrushes are and I've been horrified ever since. I change my toothbrush very, very frequently. Mouths are dirty, bathrooms are dirty, it just makes sense.

>> Rusty Nailed. This is the follow up book to Wallbanger that we read as Blogger Book Club, remember? I loved that book. I didn't even know there was going to be a sequel until I saw it on Goodreads last week. Obviously I needed to purchase it immediately. Even though I'm not going to read it right now because I'm still doing #HPsummerReRead and I'm currently working my way through Book 4 - Goblet Of Fire, which is lengthly. Fabulous, but lengthly (37 chapters, 734 pages, bia bia).
>> I really needed new scissors since my favorite pair bit the dust right before I went to Vegas and Target has the school supplies out now, which is practically my heaven. So did I technically need these particular scissors? No. But aren't they adorable? They were only like $3, so I'm sure they'll break soon and I'll need new ones, but I don't care at the moment.

And that is that.
Here's the receipt for proof!!

Happy Monday, ya fools.

Blogmopolitan - Shaken, Not Stirred

Sometimes someone comes up with a really great idea and the only appropriate response is "why didn't I think of that?!".. Well, Erin a few months back came up with a really great idea. It's called The Blogmopolitan Quiz. Ya know, like the quizzes in the Cosmopolitan magazines that celebrities do? Yea, it's like that but for bloggers and it's damn genius.

I participated during her 2nd Blogmopolitan Quiz and now she's here with round 3 (if you click on this link you can find a blank quiz for yourself!) and it's also fantastic, dangit. My favorite part is going to Erin's link up and clicking around and reading everyone else's quizzes. Because I'm nosey. So if you need me today, that's where I'll be..

Also, it's #backthatazzup Friday so here's a recent jam that I've been digging a lot lately.. A lot, a lot.

On repeat. All day long.

"but mama raised me good, mama raised me riiiiiiight.."

Loved It Or Loathed It? My Vegas List

What happens in Vegas.. Ends up on my blog.

I can't remember if I mentioned the reason for this Vegas trip. This Vegas trip was for my baby sister's 21st birthday.

So you could say it was her best birthday ever.

On the plane ride home I started thinking about Vegas and compiling a mental list of things I absolutely loved and things I didn't really like as much. Since Vegas is a pretty popular vacation destination, I decided to share my list. Of course, these are my own bullshit opinions, but you should read them anyway, because.. Pictures. And also, take pity on me and just read it.

Loved It
>> There are so many things to see and do in Vegas. So many things. Even if you don't like to gamble or don't like to drink, there are a hundred ways you could fill your days and nights. There's so much to do and see in Vegas that if someone was there and said they were bored, you have my permission to smack them upside the head.

>> Bellagio fountains. I loved them so much! Well, first I should mention that the Bellagio was my favorite hotel/casino that I got to see. But the fountain shows are out of this world and so fun. At night they have a new show every 10-15 minutes with music and water shooting up everywhere and yes. Loved everything about that.

>> The dry heat. This is a personal thing, because I live in Indiana and we deal with a humidity problem. So in the summer my hair frequently can't handle the humidity and just gets.. unreasonable. My hair loved Vegas. Loved it. It was so glorious. Also, 107* in Vegas is not the same as 107* in Indiana. The difference is almost mind boggling.

>> When you're gambling at a casino, you get free drinks. Well, $1 drinks, because you should always tip them a dollar, but basically a free drink. As many as you want, so.. yea, fun.
>> There are so many things that are exclusively "Vegas". By that I mean that there are so many stores, so many restaurants, so many architectural structures that are only in Vegas. I mean honestly there are just hundreds and hundreds of things that you won't see anywhere except for in Vegas and I love special things like that.
>> Constant entertainment. There are mini shows everywhere, in every hotel/casino or things constantly happening. Nothing stops, no one sleeps, it's crazy!
>> The open container laws! I don't know about other cities and such, but I know that here in Indiana you can't walk out of a bar or restaurant or casino carrying a beer and you can't just walk around on the streets drinking a vodka tonic. In Vegas that's totally legit and pretty much expected. It was so weird for me and completely hard for me to understand. You get a drink in one casino and can walk to another casino drinking it, then put that glass down in that casino. Such a hard concept for me to grasp.

>> Winning. I got a little too excited when I won $20. One time I won $200 and about lost my shit. Winning is fun.

Loathed It
>> There are so many things to see and do in Vegas. I know I said I loved this, but a little piece of me hated it too, because we had some FULL days. We filled our days to the brim and I still feel like we missed out on so much. It's kind of insane how much longer my list of things I didn't do is than my list of things we did do. You could easily go to Vegas 50 times and barely scratch the surface. Which is kind of cool, but also a little bit of a bummer.
>> Casinos and hotels in Vegas allow smoking inside the buildings. I'm not a smoker and I don't particularly like smoking, so that got to be quite annoying. Everything kind of always smells like smoke and you're constantly sitting at a slot machine next to someone who is smoking. Some hotels/casinos did a decent job of pumping fresh air in (i guess that's what they were doing) so you couldn't tell as bad, but for the most part everything always reeked of smoke. I was ready to get home and wash my clothes (which smell like smoke) and breathe some real fresh air.
>> I paid $6 for a water bottle and that just grinded my gears, so I'm mentioning it now. The water also tasted like shitty tap water.
>> Losing. As fun as winning is, losing sucks just as much. I mean, obviously.

Other than those things listed above, I really can't think of too much else to say except that I definitely, without a doubt, think that everyone should Vegas at least once in their lifetime. Just to experience a different world, if nothing else. Because it definitely is its own little world out there in the middle of the desert.

OH, my only other actual comment involves children. Vegas is just not a family vacation type of place for anyone under 21. It just really isn't. Maybe I'm particularly salty because I was hit with a stroller more than once which made me incredibly cranky, but I don't think kids have any business being in a place like that. Especially since they won't be able to fully enjoy it and neither will you. So it's a waste of cash money.
That's my 2 cents. Take it or leave it.
I'm kind of hoping you leave it, because I could always use the 2 cents. #BrokeAsAJoke

FYI - I'm Alive.. And Home

Wait, what day is it?

In case you missed it or in case you're living under a rock, I've been in Vegas. I arrived back in Indiana late last night and this time zone bologna has really got me screwed up. Also, being in Vegas Thursday through Monday has me screwed up. But you'll have that.

I had intended to write a little review of sorts (but not quite a recap because you don't like that ish) about Vegas for today, HOWEVER, my sister and my Ma have some photos on their cellular devices that I would like to get ahold of and I am unable to do so at this time. Which is putting my Vegas post off until tomorrow. Honestly, when does my life going according to plan? I mean, really?

#nofilter, bro

I am happy to report that things should start to level out and return to "normal" now.

Last night when I wasn't sleeping, because time zones are a bia bia, I had a random stroke of inspiration and scribbled several blog posts down in a good old fashioned notebook. I'm excited because some of those darn scribbles were really good ideas, which should mean some really promising blog posts coming your way.

I'm feeling generous since I came to class fairly unprepared today, so here's a sneak peek of what is to come..

>> 2 new recipes
>> A new edition to Man Candy! (previous editions - Actors Edition and British Edition)
>> A peak at my To-Read bookshelf
>> 21 day fix anyone?
>> How I blog
>> Another Vlog?
>> A FAQ post

Speaking of FAQ..
I have a few questions that I get asked a lot and I've addressed some of them and others I've just never gotten around to dealing with, but I figured I'd make one big post about it. So, if you have any questions, legitimate or random as hell (please submit ridiculously random ones, please please please) then now is your time to get them answered! Comment below or you can email me privately (kstoll129@gmail.com).

Okay, short and sweet today while I get back out of vacation mode again. These last few weeks have kicked my booty, I tell you what!
Happy Monday.. err.. Tuesday..

Things I Really, Really Needed To Share With You

I have important shit to throw at you today.

Now I'm laughing a little because "important shit" is almost an oxymoron, right? If it's "important" then should I really refer to it as "shit"? Probably not.

Why don't I just erase that opening sentence and start over? Why am I writing like this is a diary and I'm talking to myself? Life's greatest mysteries, kids. Don't try to understand me.

This post has already gotten out of hand. I've said shit three four times and I'm having conversations with myself and you're all probably out there talking shit crap about me and saying things like "why doesn't she just get to the point? why is she rambling like a psycho? why am I reading this?".

HAHAH, I crack myself up.
So, anyway, I'm probably not alone in this, but I have so many things bookmarked on my computer. Any good article I've read or something I want to remember, I just bookmark it. For some reason the last 2 weeks I've bookmarked a ton of things with the intention of tweeting them out at random times because I think people NEED to read/watch these.

Problem is that I always forget to tweet them. However, these are things I really want to share with everyone and I think they're worth your time to check them out. Seriously. So damnit, this is my blog and I'm going to force feed you guys these links/articles/videos and you're going to like it!

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If for some strange reason you haven't listened to Sam Smith's version of Whitney Houston's How Will I Know, then you need to do that, immediately. Such a good cover of such a good song!

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I came across this awesome blog post by Nicole Antoinette about how it's okay to be a beginner. I can't even tell you how much I needed to read this article. This is so well written and so motivating and I so recommend reading it! I was blown away by some of the points she made and I have quoted her article out loud multiple times since reading it. There is no shame in being a beginner.

Also Nicole's bio starts off with "I'm Nicole Antoinette, and I'm obsessed with helping you build a bullshit-free life" and that's all it took for me to want to read every post she's ever written, ever.

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Next up I want to point you all in the direction of Elite Daily. The brand themselves on being "The Voice of Generation Y".. Which is us. I've become slightly in love with this website, so there isn't necessarily a specific article I want to point your toward, but more of just toward the website as a whole. It's got a little bit of everything, including real and actual news.

But it doesn't stop there. They have so many different things that I can't even go into them all, but I'm telling you that you should at the very least check them out. There's humor, there's current events, and there's also a lot of articles about things people actually want to know. Honestly, it's a little like having a ton of really, really good blog posts in one spot. I check Elite Daily every day.

It has my stamp of approval.
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I've mentioned this guy before, but I'm going to mention him again, kind of. Joe Santagato is funny. Rude and inappropriate, but really funny. Every Thursday he does a podcast with Kate Wolff (who is a stand-up comedian and mom and funny as shit) and I listened to them all last week (there are only like 3) and I laughed a lot.

I'm telling you right now, if you are easily offended then this podcast isn't for you, at all. However, if you aren't easily offended and you don't mind listening to 40 minutes of people talking about sex and drugs, then this is for you. Also, bonus, there should be a new podcast today since it's Thursday.

I'm throwing another disclaimer on here because I just know that someone is going to listen to a podcast and then send me hate mail. So listen to me - If things like talking about 69 or talking about taking a girls virginity and getting a receipt for it so you can return it offends you, then don't listen. I'm not kidding, this is not a drill, there is not joke here. I think it's funny because I take it for what it is, which is a joke. They're comedians. But if you can't handle the heat, then get out of the kitchen.

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I actually have a lot of other things I want to throw at you guys, but I leave for Vegas in a few hours and I haven't finished packing and my sister has been blowing up my phone and I have a lot of things that need done.. Like now.
So, I'll force feed you guys things I like another time.

Much love.
Peace and sisterhood and all that jazz.
Vegas, here we commeeeeeee