Thoughts while weighing the cost/benefits of international shipping

1. It's funny how time passes differently from different perspectives. It seems like a given; time is relative. But it's more like losing touch with people and realizing that there are so many moments that you are no longer a part of, and you have no idea what is happening in someone's life until you see that Facebook update or Instagram post, or some other kind of public declaration because that's the only way we know how to connect with people now. Daniel sent me this article a while ago about the way friendships evolve over time, and we noted that it was strange how you often know so many intimate details about people without really knowing them anymore.

2. I wholeheartedly believe that positive thinking, personal happiness/gratitude, and supporting other peoples' success are so important. It's so necessary to surround yourself with people who value you and contribute positive energy, to be grateful for the little things and acknowledge the good in your life, in order to be fulfilled and happy. And it's equally as important to disregard the people who don't make you happy, who are try to be in constant competition with you, who are petty and who invalidate your successes.

3. Of all the things I'll miss while I'm away, I'm mostly upset that I'm missing the launch of the Master Palette by Mario collaboration with Anastasia Beverly Hills for the Holiday 2016 season. It looks GORGEOUS. I need to stop buying neutrals, though. They all start to look the same with a smoky eye.

4. I took a class my last quarter of college called Decision Analysis, which, fittingly, examined the way we make choices. It was very interesting. One of the more important lessons my professor taught us was that it's important to invite cognitive strain, or to consider things that potentially go against your preconceptions, to question everything you read/hear, etc. Because otherwise it's too easy to fall into the trap of making decisions for no logical reason. The only reason you should make decisions, in his opinion, is by statistical probability of the most favorable outcome (and here I said I'd never take another math class). And I recently read an article called "The Liberal Blind Spot" by one of my favorite journalists, Nicholas Kristof (he also wrote Half the Sky!), which basically talked about how a lot of liberals are extremely closed-minded toward conservatives, and how that's an often-ignored bias. His reasoning is that ideological diversity is just as important as any kind of diversity, and that it's necessary to check your biases at all times, not just when it's convenient.

5. I read this Tumblr poem a long time ago, but I just recently found the follow-up post to it. It's a very short read, but absolutely worth it. It makes you think about love in a whole different way. And I've thought a lot about this recently, because it always scared me that people who were married for 50+ years could decide that they could no longer stand each other, as if there were no security in any kind of relationship, regardless of length or depth. But it makes sense that if you're committed to someone, if you really consider them a worthwhile investment, then you make the choice and you make the effort necessary, to fix your problems. And that's why the butterflies phase is very short and relatively inconsequential; what's really important is finding someone you're willing to work on yourself for, someone that you really want to be equal partners with.

6. I saw this microdocumentary about how Snapchat filters work and I am in awe. What a time to be alive. Not to mention that Snapchat has become this massive platform for advertising and real-time storytelling, which I think is mind-blowing. And it's kind of amusing that this cutting-edge technology is being used to send ugly selfies to friends.

7. I found out a couple of weeks ago that the UC Berkeley student killed in the Nice attack went to my high school. And not only does my heart ache for his family, who is living every parent's worst nightmare, but it's so surreal and sad that these things are so much closer to home than you'd think. I hope this motivates people to speak up about these things because even though this was a horrifically tragic and isolated incident by a radical terrorist group, it's a discussion that belongs in a much larger landscape of senseless violence and it affects people just like us.

8. HOW ADORABLE is this trailer for Southside with You, a movie about the Obamas' first date. Actual #couplegoals. I love the Obama family so much. This is absurdly cute.

9. I found an article recently about why Americans are afraid of historically low crime levels, and it was very insightful. The media is largely to blame for its sensationalism, but part of it is what is referred to as grief porn, or the influx of tragedy intended to appeal to our humanity and capitalize on it. It's striking how ruthlessly the media preys on this kind of story, but even more remarkable that we continue to consume it so greedily: liking, sharing, upvoting...all to express our grief publicly and to satisfy our thirst for sensationalism. And this outpouring of support with #PrayFor hashtags and horror stories of bombings and kidnappings and shootings kind of plunges us into this downward spiral of sadness and panic and paranoia that isn't necessarily a good representation of the real world, but of the worst parts of it.

10. I am absolutely speechless at the fact that I am lucky enough to have witnessed presidential history made TWICE in the last eight years. What a truly amazing time to be an American, and to be a woman. And all of this hate, all of this killing and ugliness, all of this He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named aside...I am damn proud of this country at this moment. Also Bill Clinton playing with balloons is my new favorite thing. #DemsInPhilly

HAPPENING MEOW