The cold never bothered me anyways.

I guess it's high time I gave you folks an update on my NaNoWriMo experience this year. In case you weren't already aware, I didn't win this year. In fact, I didn't come anywhere close. I still have to update my word count. I think I hit somewhere in the 10,000 to 15,000 word range. November ended up being an awfully stressful month for school, and I couldn't exactly stay up late to get ahead on my word count like in high school. Truth is, I'm not that disappointed. I started writing a trio of wonderful fairy-tales that have so much promise, I could care less if they won me NaNo bragging rights!

For the past two months, I've been falling in love with fairytale writing all over again. It relieves my stress instead of adding to it, even when I hit roadblocks. Fairy-tales provide such a wonderful opportunity to communicate a meaningful message, tie in themes and symbolism, throw in some quirky characters, while also maintaining a sense of humor. To top off my fairy-tale love affair, I had the pleasure of watching Frozen this past weekend. That movie reminded me why I love story-telling so much. It was beautiful. I would highly encourage you all to see it. Don't listen to the music until after you've watched it, even though it's awesome. Oh, and prepare to laugh hysterically. I'd recommend checking out your sense of decorum at the door.

Let it be known that I write this post while rocking out to the Frozen soundtrack. Gosh, it's so good, it makes me want to write for Disney or something.

Look, Anna has freckles! Makes me feel a lot better after this post. Also, Hans has SIDEBURNS and a CRAVAT. Who designed these characters? Can I write them a thank you note? And would they kindly send me an exact replica of Anna's outfit, right down to the boots? Pleaseandthankyou.

In other news, it snowed today. It was the first real snow here at school, and Ally and I were naturally ecstatic. It was the kind of snow that made your hair sparkly and crunched under your feet. Combined with all of our Frozen references, I daresay it was a pretty good morning.

Until next time!

The Hair Analogy

As a child, Disney gave me some unrealistic expectations in regards to hair. I was never satisfied with my own hair. I wanted it to be Aurora-curly, Belle-brown, Ariel-long, and look as fantastic as Pocahontas' hair in the wind.

Amazing what her hair can do with a minimum amount of product.

I grew my hair long and the color turned out alright (Anne Shirley auburn, if you ask me). However, no matter how often I wished on a star, my hair never became curly. Guys, I eventually resorted to eating the crusts off my sandwiches!*

* Recent discussions have informed me that apparently not everyone grew up being told that eating bread crusts makes your hair curly. So here's your daily dose of folklore!

If I was Aurora, I would spend hours just whipping my hair to and fro. It's so BOUNCY!

After years of using lame hair products, curling irons, and one ridiculously bad perm, I accepted my fate. I have come to love my hair, and when I'm lucky, I even get to enjoy the occasional curly hair day.

Another important thing to know about my hair is that when little strands of it are exposed to rain, the beach, or a pool, I have a halo of Felicity-style curls. It's pretty much AWESOME.

See the itsy bitsy curls?

(Alright, alright, I'll start getting to the point!) So last week, after taking a jog in the rain and returning with a couple tendrils sticking out here in there, I got it in my head that maybe, under the proper conditions, the rest of my hair would just magically curl itself. I popped in the shower and helped myself to my younger sister's curly hair formula shampoo and conditioner. And you know what happened?

Absolutely nothing.

Mainly it just made my hair less shiny than usual, which made me kind of sad. Talk about a failed experiment! Now, for the analogy part of this post!

While I was trying to salvage my tired-looking locks, I came to the realization that I treat my writing a lot like I do my hair. I'm always wishing for it to be curly --- i.e., to be poetic and be perfect right off the bat. I'm constantly fighting any straight and/or wavy tendencies. I have to learn to see the beauty in the writing voice that I do have... and to appreciate the occasional curl that comes my way.

Anyone else fighting their natural voice, or their natural hair?