UTAH AND COLLEGE AND STUFF LIKE THAT

I've found myself in Utah more times in the past month than I have in my whole life. Which is weird, but also really cool because I LOVE Utah. All my Utah friends think I'm weird for loving Utah so much, but I just do. I mean, the mountains? Gorgeous. The Chick-fil-a? Heavenly. It's a good place, man.

& why have I been in Utah so much lately, you ask? Because I am officially attending Utah Valley University this fall! COLLEGE YOU GUYS. To say I'm excited would be an understatement. Can you tell how excited I am by my awkward thumbs up in that picture up there? Because I'm excited.

So, here's a little ditty about my first trip to Utah.

My mom & I flew down to Utah to meet with my counselor & take a tour of the school, which was way cool. & it was perfect timing too, because our cousin also got hitched at the same time. They were so cute. I love weddings!

 

& can we talk about how beautiful the SLC Temple is? I cant stand it.

 

 

 

My mom and Grandma are the cutest, are they not? 

Also, I am a total tourist & I don't even care. BYU Creamery was on the top of my list of must-do's and their chocolate milk was even better than I imagined.

 

& Utah's street art you guys? SO good. I've got this thing for murals. All of my friends make fun of me, but I just love them so much.

// Utah part 2 coming soon. \\

HERE ARE SOME BOOKS THAT I LIKE.

It's my senior year of high school and I'm taking two English classes. Can we talk about how absolutely crazy that is? Some days I really regret switching into AP Lit and wish I would have just stayed in sculpture 1 with the rest of the freshmen, but most days I actually really love it.

I've read more books this year than I have in my whole entire life, I think; which is really saying something because I've always been a reader. I'm no literary critic by any means, but I do what I can.

So, without further ado, here are my top 10 books I've been really enjoying as of late:

1: The Social Animal- David Brooks // I have literally been reading this book since the beginning of the school year and I am still only half way done with it because it is just so mind blowing and WOW. I can't even get over how cool this book is.

2: Eat Pray Love- Elizabeth Gilbert // Okay, okay. You can go ahead and laugh but I'm pretty sure this book changed my life. I finished reading it and didn't know what to do with my life, except for like, fly to India and meditate or something.

3: The Great Gatsby- F. Scott Fitzgerald // I read this book last year in Advanced Junior English and absolutely loved it. Then I read it two more times. Then I wrote an essay on it and the symbolism found within it and (bragging moment) my teacher said it was the best she'd ever seen. Then I went and saw the movie and couldn't believe my eyes because of how beautiful and perfect it was. Then Whitney and I went and saw a play version of it downtown and it was absolutely terrible and we laughed and laughed and laughed and basically, I just really love this book.

4: Their Eyes Were Watching God- Zora Neale Hurston // I wouldn't necessarily consider myself a feminist but I loved every single part of this book in all of its feminist glory. Zora is some kind of beautiful genius, I tell ya.

5: Tuesdays with Morrie- Mitch Albom // This is another one of those cheesy memoirs that gets a lot of flack but I don't even care because I thought it was beautiful. Super easy read with a lot of heart and depth and a lot of really great one-liners to live your life by/pin on pinterest.

6: Slammed- Colleen Hoover // A little YA every now and then is a good thing, right? This book is all about a girl who moves to a new town and dates her super hot neighbor only to later find out that her super hot neighbor is her POETRY TEACHER. You guys, this is my favorite plot line ever. Give me a book/movie/tv show with a student-teacher relationship and I will EAT IT UP. Seriously so good. Also, this book includes my two favorite things: Slam poetry and the Avett Brothers. What's not to love?

7: Fahrenheit 451- Ray Bradbury // It's a classic. Burning books and stuff like that. I read the whole thing while sitting in Starbucks the other day (sidenote: this is my favorite thing to get at Starbucks and the cute barista laughs at me every time I order it and says, "ah, you and your funky drinks") and I was completely enthralled by it.

8: 1984- George Orwell // I'm currently about half way through with this book and I can't put it down. I'm writing my end of the year final essay for AP Lit comparing/contrasting this, Fahrenheit 451, and Brave New World and it's some CRAZY SHIZ I tell you.

9: The Joy Luck Club- Amy Tan // I hated this book at first but then I sparknoted it (lol oops) and thought about it for a while and then wrote an essay on it and realized that I actually loved it. And those are some of the best books, you know?

10: The Fault in our Stars- John Green // Yes, yes. I know that every single member of the female species is currently fangirling over this book right now but just believe me when I say it's totally worth the hype. John Green is a literal genius and this book has so many layers. Read it, cry your eyes out, go read The Great Gatsby, then read it again. It will have a whole new meaning and you'll freak.

Now it's your turn. What are some of your favorite books? I'm going on day 7 of being absolutely, completely sick as a dog and bored out of my mind, so I'd love to pick up something new.

YAY FOR READING.