The Month in Instagram

Studying for the MCAT and blogging do not mix. However, I owe you all at least an update on my life! February was one of those months that just flew on by. I couldn't even remember what happened until I checked up on my Instagram pics and looked back at my calendar.

So here we go, My February in Instagram Pics:

Apparently, it snowed a lot. These are some views of frozen Lake Michigan outside of my dorm window and from around campus.

My campus is a winter wonderland! And I'm SO sick of it...it's March already. This snow should be out of here!

I've been spending more time downtown. I never realized in the 3 years I've been at Loyola how easy it is to take the shuttle to the downtown campus. My friends and I spent a Friday night studying at the downtown library...hey, there's no shame in that, is there?

An afternoon view from the downtown LUC library

Downtown study sesh! Maybe it'll become a tradition during this MCAT season.

I also apparently ate a lot of food in February. This is my favorite burger in Chicago. I've raved about it before on this blog. It's the Kimchi burger from Bop N' Grill. Fried egg, kimchi, caramelized onions...put simply, it's amazing in all its gooey glory.

This is a chicken sharma sandwich. It's a middle eastern sandwich on a type of pita bread, and it's DELICIOUS! One of my favorite parts about Loyola is that Devon, a neighborhood featuring all sorts of middle eastern and Indian restaurants, is right down the street, so I get to try all different kinds of food I wouldn't normally eat...like this!

Basically the only thing I'm living on using my meal plan. I was so happy to find our dining services offering something that is 1) actually healthy and 2) doesn't make my stomach upset. 

I volunteered through my sorority at a benefit event downtown. I know it's dark, but yes, that is a MONKEY on my shoulder. A real live monkey. In a costume. Without going into details, the event was absolutely AMAZING and was for a good cause. (Oh, and by the way? There were real camels too. Be jealous!)

Other news:

• I'm getting an apartment for next year! Finally, my very own apartment! I'm so excited to decorate it and make my own meals for a change. The kitchen in my new apartment is the same size as the one I have now, but for two people rather than four. That's a big change for me!

• I'm trying to figure out my summer plans. Right now it's just a waiting game to see what opportunities come through.

• These next few weeks are going to be NUTS. A mixer, formal, St. Patty's Day (this year I'm seeing the green Chicago river! It's happening!), Aziz Ansari, spring retreat, and then Easter. And studying somewhere in between.

But...I think this Dove chocolate wrapper sums it all up:

Get out there and make your dreams happen.

And that's exactly what I'm doing.

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That Time I Got Five Stitches in my Thumb

Let this post be a lesson to all of you: be careful opening cans. I'm serious here.

Here I was, minding my own business, making some mac and cheese with peas for a Sunday afternoon treat. I go to open the can of peas. Our can opener is right-handed, and I'm left-handed, foreshadowing the problem already. The handle was slippery for some reason, so I struggle trying to open the can. I get about halfway around, where the lid is popped open halfway, when the can opener slips out of my hand and I gash my left thumb on the super sharp edge of the lid.

It's a stupid accident for sure, but it could happen to anyone.

(Don't mind me, didn't exactly have time to put makeup on)

Thank god my roommate and I were prepared. If you don't have a first aid kit in your apartment or dorm, get one now! We tied gauze around the thumb (well, she did, while I was freaking out) and sealed it with medical tape.

Even though I kept telling her I was fine, my roommate was the smart one in this situation and called a taxi to take us to the nearest emergency room. Have a doubt about an injury? Go to the emergency room. Better safe than sorry, right?

Before we went, I had the sense to pull out the copy I have of my insurance card. This also was a god-send. My dad made me make several copies of my insurance card right when I started college. It was a lifesaver, and saved me a huge hospital bill. Make several copies of your insurance card! Who knows when something bad can happen.

My premed roommate and I tried to make the best of a situation and loved being in the ER, just to see how it worked. They seem to be great at efficiency, having a nurse take my initial vitals and information, a technician clean off my wound, and a resident stitch me back up. She was extremely nice  to me, calming me down (I've never gotten stitches before! And I was three hours away from my family! Don't laugh).

In the end of the day, I got five stitches (two on my nailbed...ouch) and my hand looks like a mummy who's gauze has started rotting off.

As horrible as it was at the time, this experience showed me how to act in an emergency. Again, here are the four tips I can leave you all with so hopefully you won't have the same experience as I did:

1. Have a first aid kit in your apartment
2. When in doubt, go to the ER
3. Make copies of your insurance card
4. Be careful opening cans. They're evil.

Anybody else have any exciting stories about going to the ER? Any tips on how to handle a situation like this?

Guilty Pleasures, Fall 2012

C'mon, you know we all have them. Guilty pleasures. Those things we know we shouldn't want, but they make us so happy.

Here are a list of my fall guilty pleasures:

Justin Bieber's new song, "As Long As You Love Me"

If I just pretend that someone else is singing this song, everything will be okay. I have an absolute HATRED towards the Biebs, but the song is so dang catchy. Speaking of the Biebs, I'm surprised he hasn't disappeared into obscurity by now. I still don't think his voice has changed yet though.

A blueberry bagel with strawberry cream cheese

Via

Best combination ever. I try not to think about the calories--if it counts for my breakfast and my lunch, then I can justify it. And c'mon, strawberries? Blueberries? Those are all fruit...so doesn't that mean that this is (sorta) healthy?

Chipotle

Via

It's the only decent, somewhat-affortable restaurant near my dorm, so my roommates and I grab their burrito bowls all the time. It's a good deal if you only eat half of the bowl for supper and save the rest for lunch the next day--two meals for the price of one!

Revenge, the TV series

Via

I think of this show as basically the grown-up version of Pretty Little Liars. The main premise is about a girl who's father was accused of being a terrorist. Now, as an adult, she goes back to the Hamptons to try to wreck havoc on the rich people who ruined her life. Yes, the Hamptons...half of the reason why I watch the show is just to ogle at the amazing dresses and outfits!

Gangnam Style by PSY

The music video is epic, and the song is so much fun to dance to. I have no idea what it's saying, but that makes the song even better.

What were your guilty pleasures this fall?

Sunday Confessions:Featuring the Skinny Jean Dance

I've wanted to link up with Alyx's Sunday Confessions for weeks now and today I finally remembered to. Beware, folks, things are about to get personal...




1. I do the "skinny jean dance" to fit into my skinny jeans after they come out of the wash. Ok, please tell me I'm not the only one and that we've all been there: you've just taken your jeans out of the dryer and they seem to have shrunk a whole size.

Via

Pulling them on becomes a huge ordeal. I put my right leg in first, then my left, and everything seems to be going fine...until I get to my hips. I start praying that the jeans will fit, and then hop, wiggle and twist trying to pull them on. And when they do, I'm thanking God and promising him I'll go to church more often, since, you know, he helped me fit into my skin-tight jeans. So that, my friends, is the skinny jean dance. And I never end up going to church more often. Hell for me will end up being endless pairs of tight, starched skinny jeans.

2. I screamed as soon as I saw that TomKat broke up. Not my proudest moment. I think I'm one of the only people in the world who didn't see that one coming.

3. An oldie, but goodie: during my freshman year of college I told everyone on my floor that I would never get a MacBook Pro and that I thought Steve Jobs was ripping everyone off--PCs were obviously the way to go. Fast forward six months and guess who ended up getting a MacBook?

4. I saw it rain yesterday for the first time in a month and a half, and I seriously felt like crying. This heat is getting to me.

5. On the 4th of July I started complaining (in my head) that the fireworks were too loud and that I couldn't study. It's kind of pathetic. I mean, how can you be mad at people for setting off fireworks on the 4th of July?

So those are my confessions! Now you all know how truly crazy I can be at times. Hope you all had good weekends and are gearing up for another week ahead!

--Becky

My Puppy's 10th Birthday

I told my dog that, as her 10th birthday present, I would make her famous. As in, I'd write a blog post about her. Because sorry, Maggie, but you're never going to get as famous as Lassie or Air Bud. Getting known by the blogosphere is about as good as it's going to get.

Even though she's now 10, can I still call her my little puppy?

For her birthday gift (you know, besides making her famous), I wanted to get her a personalized dog tag with her name on it. My family thinks she doesn't need it, because there is no way in hell she's ever going to run away from us--she knows she's got it good here, since this is where the food is at. Still, here's some cute designs I found on Etsy.

The ORIGINAL Mustache Pet ID Tag at Sofa City Sweethearts

Ok, I know, Maggie's not a boy dog, so therefore she can't grow a mustache (and the fact that's she a dog...that might be a problem too). But she's a mischievous little thing. If we leave a pizza out on our living room table, it'll disappear in a second. We don't know how she does it. 

Sofa City Sweethearts has a billion other designs too you can pick for your pet ID tag...the problem is choosing one!

Copper Heart on Nickel Pet ID Tag at Dogleg Left Designs

This one is more classic than the previous tag. I love the little heart in the middle and, like any prep, I'm a sucker for initials. 

BIG DOG Tag at Pups and Parrots

The carved paw prints are adorable! As the title says, this dog tag is huge...and Maggie is huge. Therefore the thing will look average-sized on her. Seriously, when winter comes around and she goes into hibernation mode, she looks like a sausage.

Which pet ID tag is your favorite? And do you all have any pets? 

Forming a Directory: Call for Blog Link-Ups!

So I have a problem, fellow bloggers. I really want to participate in blog hops and link ups, but I never seem to get the timing right. I usually write my posts ahead of time, so when I see a post such as "Tuesday Link-Up" in my feed, I already have a post written for that day.

It's very sad. I know.

So here's what I'm proposing. I was already making a list of all the weekly link-ups in Evernote for myself, but I thought, why not share the list with all of my followers?

Here's a list of all the weekly link-ups I've seen. Comment or email me if you host a link-up or participate in a favorite one! I'll add it to the list.
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BLOG LINK-UPS
Click on the buttons to go to the link-up pages!

MONDAY

"Mani Monday" by Heather at JustLove.ly



TUESDAY

"Top Five Tuesday" by Rachel at Just Peachy

WEDNESDAY

 

"Oh, How Pinteresting" by Michelle at The Vintage Apple

"What I'm Loving Wednesday" by Jamie at This Kind of Love

"My Life in an Instagram" by Liz at According to L

THURSDAY

"Awkward and Awesome Thursdays" from Sydney at The Daybook

FRIDAY

 

"Book Club Friday" by Heather at Blonde, Undercover Blonde and Katie at The Nerdy Katie

"Friday Favorites" by The Bargain Blonde SATURDAY

 

"Strut Your Stuff" at Six Sisters' Stuff

SUNDAY

 

"Weekend Update" hosted by Sami at Sami's Shenanigans, Leann at Join the Gossip and Dana at five30three

"Sunday Confessions" hosted by Alyx at Every Day is a New Adventure

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BLOG HOPS

MONDAY

TUESDAY

WEDNESDAY

THURSDAY

FRIDAY

WEEKEND

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Thanks everyone! If you want, please share this list with others. Though it's still small, I hope it can help other bloggers out.

*if you don't want me to post about your link-up here either, don't hesitate to email me and let me know!