Category: Junior Literary

Bantu Knots 7.5/10

Bantu Knots are my most favorite to look at. What I love most about this style is not just the small beautiful buns, but the intricate parting styles. What ties this whole style together is the geometric work put into the parts  by the stylist. I’ve seen circle parts, triangle parts, and even heart shaped parts. Though the shaped and instruction is limited, there are many other things you can do to spice-up this beautiful hairstyle.

1. ADD MORE HAIR!!! Adding more hair to your own helps to accentuate the style. With Bantu knots being an up-do style, it already brings more attention to your face. Having bigger knots help to make everything flourish together. I can’t really explain it in words but big Bantu Knots are so beautiful and it really adds another element to this prominent cultural style.

2.ACCESSORIZE PLS!!!! I personally loveee adding jewelry into my hair. It makes your hairstyle sparkle more. With Bantu knots, I heavily recommend using GOLD jewel pieces. Silver is good, but gold makes you seem more out-standing especially, if you’re going for a more early 2000s or African look. Enjoy the finer things in life and add these unique pieces to your hair.

3. PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR EDGES. As I stated before, this is an up-do style, and while edges may not seem important, they do also help bring more attention to your hairstyle. I personally can’t do edges to save my life, but after getting this hairstyle so much in my early stages of the “Big Chop”, it made me want to learn. With this style, you can jus do a simple swoop on the edges on your head, or you can be an over achiever and Picasso the thing. Whether big small, curly or laid, edges can always bring that special something to any style.

While the style itself is a beauty to witness, taking it down is my favorite part. Knot-outs are what we call the result of keeping and maintaining the hairstyle for so long. In result of this, we are left with defining curls and a lot of volume. However, in my experience, it doesn’t always come out this way. The result of Bantu Knot-outs depend on humidity, the amount of product, and pure luck. You’ll never see the same results twice with this hairstyle, but it is a pretty protect style nonetheless.

 

Fulani Braids 1000000/10

Honestly, if there was one style I could wear for the rest of my life, it would be Fulani Braids. They are so beautiful ands very easy to manage. Like the previous style, adding edge designs to this look takes it to a whole other level. If anybody wants to donate funds to me for this hairstyle, I take CashApp <3. Anyways, let’s get more in depth about this hairstyle.

Fulani or feed-in braids originate from the Fulani (Fula) people in West Africa and the Sahel region. It is most widely known for the its unique braiding patterns and the unique braided loop on the side of the head. I personally love seeing this style with huge beads. If I had to choose a favorite type of bead to complement this beautiful hairstyle it would probably be in between wooden and clear ones. I really emphasize on accessorizing these hairstyles, but this style is so detailed that you could do without.

Getting these braids are worth the pain. Now I am labeled  as “tender-headed” in my community, which basically means my pain tolerance of someone pulling on my hair for hours on end is very low, but I am very willing to sit through that just for these braids. How long it’ll take solely depends on the length and pattern of your hair. The only down-side to this style is the pain you’ll feel after getting them and the long hours of sitting in a chair while someone neatly and tightly braids your hair. That is if you’re not “tender-headed”!

 

Mini Twists 6/10

I love a good twist out, HOWEVER twisting my thick 4c hair takes up so much time!!! And sure they look cute when they’re fresh, but after taking a short well-needed nap they look so weird. Though this is still a controversial topic in my community right now, I still struggle with my relationship with length. I have shrinkage. That basically means after my hair dries, it poofs and shrinks down.  When I twist my hair, I usually use a lot of product to successfully comb through my very kinky coils. After my products dries over night, my hair goes from my shoulders, to the tops of my ears. This is perfectly normal and it actually means that you hair is very healthy. This is where harmful stigmas come into play. Black women are very hyper-emasculated and that often comes from seeing black women with short hair and a strong physique. Though a lot of  attention is being brought to this issue, I still try to separate myself from that narrative. Thus sprouting my love-hate relationship with my natural hair. 

Mini twists aren’t the bad guy, but the twist-out is. Like Bantu knots, the results of a good twist-out is solely based on luck. It may give you gurl defining hair one day, and poofy naps the next, but the real skill is finding what technique gives you the results you want. Honestly, the time and effort I put into these aren’t worth the results I see after I take them out, but freshly done twists always make me come back to this hairstyle.

NOTE: Please do not attempt these hairstyles if you are non-black. This is not an exclusive statement, but one of concern!

from my early childhood, i have been utterly obsessed with true crime. typically, my interest lies in the investigation of murder and other such heinous crimes; but a case that has haunted my brain all my life is that of former president bill clinton- perhaps one of the greatest abusers of power in american history.

now, i could honestly go on and on for days about the lewinsky scandal, and i won’t subject anyone to that. for the sake of a dead horse, i will simply be discussing the gorgeous casting choices of the ryan murphy series based on the case- american crime story: impeachment. upon hearing that a series would be made about the case, i was equally excited and nervous. i knew it would be interesting and would bring light to different perspectives, but i feared that it would just be another cheap jab at a woman’s dignity. however, five episodes into the series, i can say that my fears were unfounded.

first of all, i’d like to talk about the positively genius casting of beanie feldstein as monica lewinsky. i feel that monica is likely a difficult woman to portray as an actress because of the pictures so recklessly painted of her by the media. however, beanie allows you to see monica as she was and is- human. she talks about heartache and diets and sales at macy’s. she is more than the tabloids of the late 90s would have you think, and beanie makes this abundantly clear with her masterful subtlety and sweetness. you see monica in yourself and yourself in her, which is very different from most other portrayals of her that i’ve seen (i’m looking at you, saturday night live).

the casting, in my opinion, is wonderful all around. sarah paulson plays linda tripp seamlessly, evoking a conflict between pity, relatability, and unlikability.  at first, i had my doubts about billy eichner being cast, but he makes an incredible drudge and truly steals the few scenes he’s in. cobie smulders is an absolutely uncanny ann coulter, bringing a chill to my spine each time i experience her stone cold grimace and icy wit. annaleigh ashford is a sad, endearing paula jones. judith light captures susan carpenter-mcmillan’s calculated goodness brilliantly. so far, we’ve only seen glimpses of edie falco as hillary clinton, but i cannot wait to see her impeccable acting as such a complex character. the makeup artists and stylists on this show all deserve raises for transforming these actors into these infamous icons of the 1990s. i’ve even seen people compare pictures from real life with stills from the show, and the attention to detail is incomparable and greatly appreciated by viewers like me, who tend to do extra research on the subject matter.

as with all of my blogs, this is a bit self-indulgent, and i completely understand why someone would be uninterested in dissecting something that happened so long ago. however, if you have any interest in true crime cases involving the abuse of power, feminism, and trial by media, this is absolutely something for you. there’s a ton out there about this scandal, and if you find the right resources, it can be super informative and interesting. below, i listed a couple articles that i enjoyed reading and found helpful in my personal research. i hope that if you have any interest in this case, you’ll take a look at these and gain something from them 🙂

Monica Lewinsky – Dress, Bill Clinton & Now – HISTORY

President Clinton’s Answers to Judiciary Committee’s 81 Questions | AustralianPolitics.com

These Are the Sexual-Assault Allegations Against Bill Clinton (businessinsider.com)

 

This is it! I’m out of ideas! We’re at the bottom of the barrel, and it’s gone rotten. I have no idea what to do for my blogs right now. All of the ideas I’ve had so far, save for the darker timeline, have fallen flat for me. I don’t particularly enjoy writing most of the “series” I’ve started anymore. I suppose this could be attributed to a slight style change? I mean, I have concepts. I have plenty of concepts. The issue is, the concepts themselves need development before I can consider them an “idea” for a blog. Wait. I’m pretty sure it would be ideas then concepts. Just switch those two around I guess.

Blogs are an interesting challenge. Since there’s no real limits to what one can consider a blog, they become exponentially harder to write. When faced with the horizon of infinity, a person becomes only capable of standing and staring. Blogs are my current horizon. I want to create something that matches the scope of what blogs are capable of. But, if I ever manage to do this, would anyone even read it to completion? A blog at it’s fullest potential would be the worlds longest piece of literature. Perhaps the ideal blog is a blog that can piece together everything. A blog that can connect the finite before to the infinite after. The secret of blogs is hidden in absolute knowledge. If someone was capable of knowing everything, then, and only then, could a perfect blog be realized. 

Well, I don’t want to have an existential crisis over the incomprehensible potential of blogs, so I think I’ll make this the last paragraph. I’d say this qualifies as another “break” blog since I’ve run out of ideas. I’ll probably spend a good chunk of time brainstorming and figuring out a good idea. Well, I have one idea that I might start on eventually, but it’s gonna be a while before I get there. Alright, go read something else now, or write something. This blog does not continue past this paragraph. So, seriously, leave me be so I can figure out what to do for the next blog.

AAVE stands for African-American Vernacular English, or Ebonics. In simple terms, it is the way Black/African-Americans speak to each other on a regular basis. It has recently been recognized as a language of it’s own. Often times Black and African descendants were forced to code-switch from our day-to-day speech to “proper English”. AAVE is often demonized and used to mock my people, causing many of us to derive from the language. I want to share the importance of this language, the validity of it, and why as a non-black person you shouldn’t be able to speak it.

Sense of Community

Growing up, I would often speak fluently in AAVE. It was a way I could connect with other kids in my community. It was a way of life for me, I would speak it and think nothing of it. However, when I got older, my teachers and family members would often subtly correct my way of speaking. They would say, “No one is going to take you serious if you talk like that.” “You need to correct your speech before you go into that school”. They would even go as far criminalizing me just for the way I spoke.

So, I listened to them. I began to talk “proper” and “correct” the way I pronounced different words. In doing that, I lost my connection with my friends and classmates. I would be teased for being the “whitest” black girl they know. I felt as though I couldn’t talk to my friends in the same way I did before. Though I was being teased and neglected by my classmates, I would often be praised by adults and teachers. I had very mixed feelings about it, but I learned a technique that let me have the best of both worlds.

I learned to code-switch around the 5th Grade. I would speak regularly around my friends, then act like a totally different person in class. Even now, I still catch myself code-switching in the middle of conversations with people. I feel more comfortable speaking it around people like me and I immediately go in to code-switching mode when I’m around my white-counterparts. Though I am still working on it, I still feel as though I am going to be invalidated for speaking AAVE and incorporating it into my work.

AAVE/EBONICS IS VALID

It took me so long to accept the statement above. I would hear so many authority figures demonizing my language that I lost all sense of self. But after reading so many articles and hearing other Black people speak on it, I learned that it is something that should be more prominent in my life.

Talking down on this language is a form of systemic racism. Racists use any tactic they can to strip black people of their culture and use it against them. Something I think is worse, is when non-black people use Ebonics in a form of mockery and/or out-of-context of the situation or person. What I mean by that is, I find it very harmful when someone non-black uses it without knowing the meaning behind it and incorporating it in their speech when they simply don’t talk like that. That shows that you don’t care about the people, the language, or the meaning behind it. This is a form of cultural appropriation. When I see it used out of context my automatic thought is that this person is racially insensitive, and when I establish that, it very hard for me to see that person in a different way.

You’re Not Entitled to the Language

Though that line may come off harsh, there is so much truth to it. If you are a non-black person and you use Ebonics, why do you feel you can? One of the things that comes with uplifting this language is dismantling that entitlement. It is a language that derives from slavery. It was a horrific point in time were Black people were not allowed to speak to each other out of fear of rebellion. It is a mixture of broken English and our original language. The history and significance of it isn’t one that you can just take out of context. You’ve read my story and saw the lost sense of community I had to experience just because I spoke it. So I encourage you to remove AAVE terms and manners from your speech, if you’re non-black, and educate yourself on the matter. Be an ally and the change you want to see.

     Now instead of doing my usual interview blog, there is a very important matter that I must handle first. I have a goal here, and that goal is to convince every single soul who reads this to watch one of the best animes to ever be created; Naruto.

  Forgot all prior bias that you may have about this show. I do not care if the fandom annoys you, I do not care if you think that it is too long, these were once my thoughts until I sat down and watched it. And not to be dramatic but it literally changed my life. I spent my entire 8th grade summer watching Naruto, and I am currently in the process of re-watching it. That is how DEEP my love for this show is. Yes I have watched all five hundred thirty nine episodes, and yes I am dedicating my time to watching it again. That is how much CONTROL THIS SHOW HAS OVER ME.

   From the plot to the characters it is a journey that you will never want to end. While 539 episodes may sound like a lot, once you get pulled into the show they fly by in an instant.

    Naruto has some of the most loveable anime characters of all time. Mine being The Neji Hyuga >:). Also another cool thing that I just have to mention is the fact that I share a birthday with the legendary Rock Lee, November 27th :p.

   Now, Naruto is not a recent anime, meaning that it has been out for quite a minute, so spoilers might be inevitable, BUT SPOILERS CAN BE AVOIDED IF YOU JUST SIT DOWN AND ENJOY ALL 539 EPISODES IN A SPAN OF ONE WEEK. THIS SHOW IS SO CAPTIVATING I HAVE FAITH THAT YOU CAN DO IT.  

  OH, AND DON’T GET ME STARTED ON THE SOUNDTRACK IN THIS MASTERPIECE OF A SHOW. From the outros to the intros no other anime can top the songs that Naruto has produced. It really adds to the nostalgia listening to these songs as I’m re-watching it :’).

   Some people complain about Naruto being too boring or slow paced, but I can almost guarantee you that if someone says “NaRutO iS tOo BorINg.” then they most definitely did not make it to the Chunin Exam arc of og naruto. ONCE YOU GET TO THAT CHUNIN EXAM ARC IT DOSEN’T STOP FROM THERE.

    Though one suggestion to help with the length of the show is SKIPPING THE FILLERS. I for one did not skip a single filler, because I didn’t even know what a filler was at the time, but even so I enjoyed every episode despite the brief intermissions between the battles.

   Now after reading my blog about this life changing anime I hope that I can at least persuade you to add it onto your watchlist. I PROMISE YOU, YOU WILL NOT BE DISSAPOINTED!!!!!!!!!

-The Strangers-

If your girlfriend denies your marriage proposal, for the love of god don’t go to a secluded summer home together afterwards. James and Kristen move about the rose-petal covered home in uncomfortably suffocating silence. Then, a knock. A blonde woman is at their door, asking for a Tamara. The couple can’t see her face. After awkward explanation and turning her away, eventually James leaves to go on a night-time drive. Kristen then stares at her engagement ring after PUTTING IT ON and I guess thinking about what “could have been” or something? I don’t know, but it’s stupid. She’s also listening to this VERY creepy music. Personally James dodged a bullet in my opinion. Who rejects a marriage proposal then wears the ring? 

Well, eventually during the movie the couple’s house is besieged by 3 masked assailants, who attack and terrorize them simply “Because you were home.” Okay, that’s creepy as H-E-double-hockeysticks. For someone with paranoia, this made me lock my door and close my blinds. Slowly but surely during the course of the night, the couple’s communication with the outside world is cut off. Slashed tires, phone lines cut. 

Super cool. Wow, paranoia alarm is just going crazy right now. This has all been going on during the night, by the way, so the creep factor is upped by ten. But, near the end of the night, Kristen is badly injured and all of her attempts to contact the outside world have been met with silence. James is gone, probably dead (or so I thought!) Kristen is knocked out, and snaps awake tied to a chair right next to James. 

It’s daylight. Okay, so maybe the terror is over? Maybe it was all a prank, and they’ll leave? 

The curtains open, and as the warm sunlight seeps into the room, the couple is killed. Curtains open. The Strangers don’t care if anyone sees, that doesn’t matter to them. The sunlight brought no comfort to the couple. There was no twist, no catch. This truly was just a random attack. The couple answered the door, so the strangers decided they would be the prey.

 

The Strangers satisfy no curiosities. Nothing is explained. When masks are taken off, the people truly are just.. Strangers.

(Spooky!)

(I want to thank Locklyn for making me watch all these movies. Please check her blogs out as she explains how to fight back against killers in movies like this one.) 

(Disclaimer: This is satire)

Today is a tragic day in our history. President John Mulaney has been pronounced dead. He was assassinated by a member of a dangerous terrorist organization known as “The Dream SMP.” The member, a well known pro-digitalization activist known as Ranboo, was arrested around noon. However, the organizations kingpin known as Jschlatt is still out there. These are truly dark times, as the digitalization movement is on the rise.

Vice President Rick Astley was sworn in earlier this morning as the new President of the United States of Utah. The people can expect to see a major change in the running of this country. Some have even speculated that this would be the third “Reign of Terror,” the second being the month-long presidency of Elon Musk. We can only hope that Astley does not have the same pro-digitalization ideals that Musk did.

In other news, Queen Elizabeth has finally reached her 1008th birthday, or at least what we believe to be. Tensions between Spance and Germoslovakiany are on the rise. The world may be heading into a catastrophic war the likes of which we’ve never seen before.

Everest Valley was flooded due to intense rainfall in the area, experts are considering renaming it to Everest Lake. However, the locals of the area are strongly against this, one citizen, who preferred to be unnamed, stated “Everest Lake? What kind of ridiculous name is that? Almost as ridiculous as Everest Valley being a mountain! Mount Everest? Absolutely absurd.” 

Music fans are screaming as K-pop sensation Lil Nas X is sued by Heavy metal band The Beatles for plagiarising the lyrics from their song Sweet Caroline. However, some good news has been recently found. Opera-country fusion band BTS has released their new album Montero.

That’s all for this time, folks. This afternoon, due to the unfortunate demise of President Mulaney, there will be two required UwU’s and four OwO’s. Be sure to keep your IKEA vests on at all times, and have a fantastic day! 

hi, blog world. seeing as how we’ve gotten to know each other pretty well, i think i can be candid with you in this post. i… am not doing so great; and that’s ok! i mean, it’s not, but it’s also not anything to concern yourself with. lately, i’ve just felt a few steps behind in life. i’m always tired, my skin is a mess, and my hair is oftentimes less than perfect, to say the least. then, to top it all off- i miss my home so badly. it feels like i have no reason to- i mean i go home every two weeks, right? still, though, i keep finding myself listening to the songs i’d blast in the car with friends, watching the movies i’d watch to go to sleep as a kid, and wearing the clothes that used to be my favorites, despite my desire for a new sense of style. a new beginning. my heart just can’t seem to catch up with my mind right now.

mentally, i’m at the lake. i’m sitting at the window, taking orders from some beach bum with an attitude while my friend complains about the ice cream machine’s lack of reliability. i’m struggling to calculate the amount of change i’m supposed to be giving to the Padgett boy, and my boss’s boss is questioning me about the missing pool floats. i miss the laughter, the sun, even the nosy front desk ladies. i miss my job.

mentally, i’m in starkville. i’m leaving the movie theatre with my friends, trying to decide if we should go to umi or strange brew first. we don’t deliberate for long, though- we have all the time in the world. we ride through the cotton district, blasting whatever song we pretend to love ironically. after an ivy roll and an iced blondie, we hop into the civic and head home to dream about cowbells, studio apartments, and freedom.

mentally, i’m at home. i’m in the living room with my family, watching catfish and debating over whether james the model from los angeles is real or not. the cat and dog are snoring in the chair across from us on the blanket we just washed. we’ve all taken our designated spots, and i’m in the chair with the cat scratches on the back, sipping a pepsi and dozing off occasionally. i’m home.

now, don’t get me wrong, blog world- i love msa. i’m so grateful for this opportunity. i’ve met some amazing people and done some amazing things; but i’d be lying if i said i didn’t miss my north star. my hometown. i know that this is just something that’ll take a little time, and i’ll probably be over it in a week. right now, though, i just needed to pour my heart out a little. i hope you don’t mind too much, blog world. ’til next time.

 

 

 

This week’s installment of inanimate attachment is going to be focused on none other than my dear friend and roommate: Emma Stapp. Emma’s inanimate attachment is one that she acquired many years ago during her childhood, and has kept until now. The object Emma has chosen to let me talk about in this blog? A timeless classic: a Cory Monteith silver locket. 

When asking Emma about what her inanimate attachment was, she recalled how this became significant to her. Emma told me that she acquired the locket one  summer day when she was around 5 years old. She told me that the locket is an important object to her because it reminds her of the summer days just like the one she got it and the family member that bought it for her. The show Glee was also a big part of her childhood, so when recalling all the sentiments attached to the necklace, Emma also recalled how the necklace was also a representation of her childhood in that sense too.

When talking to Emma, I learned more about her and why this small trinket I had seen on her desk many times was so important to her. Throughout this series I plan to do more of exactly what this experience so far has done – I want to connect. I want to hear of other peoples’ important little stories, experiences, memories etc. I want to listen, learn, and share with you all! 🙂