Canada || Blue Mountain + Pumpkins + Waterfall!

I actually love how the light is illuminating me :D

Long time no talk!!! Second year is actual death. (Sorry to all the people who are in first year or high school and want to pursue science) but tis life. 

Anyways, I went sightseeing like a tourist a few days ago, and here are some photos!

I went to Blue Mountain, Ontario, which is supposed to be a ski resort, but like there were dying leaves that had pretty colours so..... :D Naturally, we climbed that mountain and holy crap. It was... exercise. D:

Outfit: Jeans-Aeropostale from a long time ago, plaid shirt & striped shirt-Ardene, boots-Walmart, bag-Calvin Klein

The view thooooo

Oh god my face 

Apple farm!

Tiny foodz.

#NotPosingAtAll

Mmmmmmm delicious!

Wao.

The First Year Experience

First year was an interesting year for me, but, now that its all over, I can look back and see what I've done. So here's a list of some of the things that I've done and learnt this year.

• This year was the first year I'd ever lived away from my family (except for summer camps, of course). It was a new type of freedom, which came with both good and bad things. A good side of freedom is being able to do whatever you want, when you want it. Want to eat snacks at 2AM? Go for it! But, being completely free isn't always good because you're stuck with doing things like laundry, and having to buy your own things.
• Unlike high school, attendance isn't taken in universities, as I'm sure most of you know. But, however, that doesn't mean you don't need to go to them-- even if in the moment they seem useless because near finals, you will regret that. I had a class where going to lectures seemed useless because the teacher would drone on and on about useless examples, however, when finals came around, I panicked because I learned that those examples were actually important (hopefully I don't make the same mistake again, haha) Contrastingly, sometimes lectures are truly useless. Like, my physics class, for example. Going there did not benefit me academically in any way. I was not more prepared for tests and I did not understand more material by going. In those instances, I don't think it would hurt to skip a few classes (or all the classes ;) )
• On Monday, I had to say goodbye to the campus, and my dorm, a place that had become my home for the year. It was bittersweet because yay summer! and because I had to leave knowing that I would never see my dorm again, or ever live on campus. 
• I learned that moving out can be fun, but it's super stressful. Many times, I caught myself wondering "How the heck did I fit it all into my suitcase when I came here?" 

So, what's happening now? Well, I recently found a summer job (but more on that later!) so hopefully, I will gain some new experiences and make money. As for next school year, that will be filled with moving out (to my own apartment!) and maybe, for the first time, getting my own pet.

Thanks for reading this catching-up post with me,
--J

PS: Now that it's summer, expect many more posts to come!

4 Study Tactics That Work

After two weeks of intense day-after-day of evalutations, lab reports, and assignments, the knowledge of needing good study tactics has been even further ingrained into my head, haha. Here are 5 study tips that I try to apply every time I have a ton of things to do!

1. Interval Study

Much like interval training, interval study is when you study for a period of time (usually 30 minutes, for me) and then take a short break (5 minutes). When you have a lot of things to do, you might think the last thing you should be doing is wasting time on breaks (like who has time for that shit??) But, it is important to give your brain a bit of a breather once in a while. During your break, your brain will have time to refresh itself and process the information that you threw into it in the last 30 minutes.

An app I use for this is Forest (available on iOS and Android). Not only does this app notify  you when you finish your mini study session, it also prevents you from getting distracted by going on your phone! (Killing two birds with one stone is always the way to go!)

2. Electronics = OFF!

I've already touched on this point above with the app Forest, but guys, it is so so so important to eliminate your distractions by turning off your electronics! It sounds obvious, but you have no idea how much it can help until you actually do it. 

Sometimes, you might need to use the computer, but not the internet, in cases like that, I'd advise you to turn off the wifi. If you need the internet, then maybe look into add-ons that will ban you from using certain sites (ie. Facebook, YouTube, Twitter) for a certain amount of time. Although I don't do this, an example of this type of add-on is StayFocused.

3. Have a Plan

It's a good idea to have at least a rouch idea of what you plan to accomplish every day. For me, I make a to-do list of all the things I ideally will finish every single day for a week, when I have busy weeks (eg. read chapter 12 for chemistry and finish lab report on monday). There's an actual week of my life where I did this, and it really helps! It's also a good idea to write down due dates, so you know the maximum amount of time you have to do something.

4. Lifestyle Matters

The way you live when you're super duper busy matters, too! If you're too stressed, your preformance levels will start to drop and you won't be able to do as much as you ideally could. So, to prep yourself so that you can achieve your maximum potential, get at least 6.5 hours of sleep. (I would say get a full 8 hours, but, really, who has time for that?) 

You are what you eat! Seriously! Putting junk into your body will only make you feel sluggish. Make sure you stay hydrated and fill your bodies with lots of nutrients! There are all sorts of foods that can help boost your brain power so you can get the most out of your time. Examples of these foods include avocados, blueberries, and broccoli. Read this for an explanation for what some of these foods are good for.

One last thing, IISuperwomanII recently posted a video called "5 REAL Ways to get Your Work Done" in which she outlines 5 seriously awesome strategies that we can implement into our lives when we want to get crackin'. (Seriously go watch it, it's an awesome video)

Anyways, I hope these were at least some what helpful. Do you have any tips that I didn't mention? If so, please let me know in the comments!

--J

2015 in Review

2015 was an interesting year for me. I can't say it was the worst, but it definitely wasn't the best either. Let's go over (in kind of chronological order) what happened this year...

In 2015...

• A relationship that was really important to me ended. What a great start off to the year, right?
• I sent in my university applications and received some early acceptances. This gave me a great boost to my non-existent self-esteem at the time.
• I got a promotion in Air Cadets to the rank of Warrant Officer 2nd Class
• Graduated from Air Cadets, something that I had been a part of since I was 12.
• Graduated from high school. Thank god, that place was a nightmare.
• Moved into my dorm. This was my first time living away from my family, an interesting and fun experience.
• Started university. Realized I wasn't understanding anything in chemistry, freaked out... BUT, eventually it got better, and now, everything is fine. (yay)
• Felt happy. For the first time, I actually felt happy for long periods of time as an individual. As stressful university is, I actually like it! 

I think those are the biggest events of this year... It wasn't the best year, but it was a year of change, and change is almost always hard. 

2015 started bad, but is going to end well. My only hope for 2016 is that it starts well, and ends well. I know that bad things are inevitable, so I know that the new year won't be full of 100% happy things, but I only hope that I approach the bad situations with a good outlook.

Happy new year, guys!

Christmas Adventures

A few days ago, I went to the Toronto Christmas Market. I mostly went there to see all the festive scenes and admire the Christmas trees and to obnoxiously sing Christmas carols; I already knew everything would be hella expensive (sorry, I'm a broke uni student here lol). Here are a compilation of pictures I took.

The sky was so beautifully clear.

The fairy lights are so amazing!

When I saw that ladybug at a nearby park, I just HAD to go for a ride haha

Loving that cobblestone aesthetic

Oh Christmas tree, oh Christmas tree, how ever green thy branches...

Is it just me, or do these stores look so beautiful? (especially the pastels)

That sunset tho!!

Fairy lights galore!

Goodbye 2015....

Merry Christmas and happy holidays, guys!!

--J