20 Thoughts I Have in an Exam

Yes, it's me. I'm still alive and kicking it - barely, but still. I haven't fallen off the face of the earth or given up on my blog - I don't think I could ever do that - no, I'm currently taking my final exams for the semester, like I explained in my recent update post.

Exam season is something wonderful. I spend so much time at school that I could basically bring a blanket and pillow and just move in there already, because I hardly get to come home anyways. When I'm home once in a while, I'm basically glued to my desk, trying my hardest to prepare for my exams.

However, if you have taken your fair share of exams yourself, you will know that one can only prepare so much and taking the exam is a whole other issue.

Now that I have already taken two out of my nine exams, I had the idea to share some of the funniest, dumbest and desperate thoughts I have had during exams - maybe we can laugh about them together to distract ourselves from the workload piling up on our desks.

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Christmas Gift Guide: Mom

Getting others presents is one of my favorite things in life. Watching people I love unwrap presents I handpicked for them makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside - or, at least it does when they like their presents.

But picking out presents can be really damn hard, especially when you're looking for something special for people close to you who have literally seen it all - the good, the bad and the ones you bought the day before.

Because of that, I decided to make a Christmas gift guide series this year where I give you some inspiration on what you could get for your loved ones.

Mums are especially hard to buy presents for in my eyes as we always want to treat them like the queens they are, but as we are their children, they've basically gotten all the gifts from us before so it's hard to come up with something new and unique.
I've thought about some gift ideas for all the Moms out there - some of which I'll personally be getting mine as well - so get ready to take notes!

Update: Why I Might Disappear

It's that time of the year again - or well, that time of the semester - where I might just disappear on you guys without any comment, so to avoid pulling one hell of a hiatus like I did at end of last year, I thought I'd fill you guys in on how crazy my life is about to get.

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Why I Will Never Accept That You Voted For Trump

It is currently 7.35 in the morning here in Germany, I have been awake for almost five hours and the events of these past five hours have moved be so deeply that I felt the urge to discuss them and share my opinions on what has happened.

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If you don't live under a rock, you will know that it was Election night last night - for us Europeans while it technically still is election night for the Americans. I'm invested in global politics, so I have been keeping up with this election for over a year, and now it has come to its climax.

I cannot believe all of these events that have been unfolding ever since the first polling stations closed. I cannot believe the sheer mass of people - we're talking several dozen million - who voted for Donald Trump. It is beyond me. I myself do not agree with what Hillary Clinton says to one-hundredt percent, but when you compare those two canidates, the choice between them should come to you naturally.

Hillary Clinton does not have a white vest. There's been the shady email affair that has been discussed widely and deeply and was announced to not have happened at all by the FBI less than 48 hours before the debate. She has experience with politics, and some of it is bad.

However, when you compare her to Trump, I cannot fathom how you could vote for the latter.

If you voted for Donald trump, you voted for racism. If you voted for Donald Trump, you voted for sexism and misogyny. If you voted for Donald Trump, you voted for xenophobia. If you voted for Donald Trump, you voted for discrimination of all minorities in the United States.

Even if a miracle will happen and Clinton can still turn this around with only a handful of results to be announced, the results this election has brought us are truly horrifying. Even if Trump was to lose, millions, if not up to a hundred million Americans chose to support racism, sexism, misogyny, xenophobia, exclusion and discrimination. Are you able to comprehend what it means that so many people support such hateful beliefs? This has opened up whole new abysesses of human spitefulness.

With your vote, you went against everything that your country stands for. 

The US is a nation of immigrants, built up by immigrants, and unless you're Native American, every single one of you will find immigrants in their faimly tree if they go back far enough. How can you turn to a xenophobic man, who openly discriminates other races, makes fun of them and threatens to destroy their lives?

The US is the land of the free and the land of equality for all. Equality for all races as well as all genders and people of all sexualities. But how can you have equality when your president opposes same-sex marriage, when he makes fun of the LGBT community?
And how can you have equality for all sexes when one white man can determine whether or not it is legal for a woman to get an abortion if she really does need it to continue living her life? There cannot be equality between the sexes when your president is a man who belittles women, who thinks they are not respected enough to work in high positions. A man who has double digit accusers for sexual abuse and gets out of it by claiming that "most of these women aren't even attractive enough" for him to go after them?

There is more to this, I could possibly go on for hours, But know this:
If you voted Donald Trump, you too are responsible for immigrants, both documented and undocumented, fearing for the safety of their families. You too are responsible for queer citizens' fear to be who they are, especially if they are not out of the closet yet. You too are responsible for Muslims being afraid to openly practice their religion. You too are to be held responsible if Trump's trade policies lead to millions of people losing their jobs all over the world, including in your own country.

Is no one aware of the fact that it is not normal for so many people to be afraid of the possibility of one of the canidates being elected as president?
As a German, I remember the last time this happened in my country. The last time a well-spoken man promised to fight for his citizens, he did the opposite. It resulted in hate crimes, in persecution, and eventually, in a war.

I'm not trying to meet trouble halfway, I'm simply analysing all of the facts and utterances we have experienced during the past year. After tonight, nothing will be like it was 24 hours ago, and the change is mostly likely to be for the worse, especially for all the non-white, non cis American citizens.

What is important to realise and remember in those remaing minutes before Trump takes the last state he needs in order to win the election is the fact that you cannot back down.
Whether you're Hispanic, Black, queer, trans, Muslim, or disabled, you are who you are. This result will not change this. And you should fight for who you are and for your rights. You cannot allow yourself to be run over or pushed aside. You have a right to have rights, no matter who runs the country.

It might not be easy, but we'll find a way to work through this. 

I am telling you this as a German. Through my veins runs the blood of people who lived under one man who was of the hook, who were persecuted and eventually fled the country. Through my veins flows the blood of the oppressed. They are the ones who never backed down, never gave up themselves or the fight they had in them. You might think of us as pests, but we are damn hard to get under control.

I am also telling you this as someone who is invested in global relations and politics. Know that there are people, entire countries not only rooting for you, but working towards making this better. There are govermenents who will not be Trump's puppets and be let themselves be commanded.

I am not exaggerating this situation. I have American friends telling me that they do not know what to do, that they're scared. This is really and this is happening. 

Everyone made a choice last night, and now we have to work through the results that choice brought.
It is the only way.

As Maya Angelous said:
"You may shoot me with your words, you may cut me with your eyes,
You may kill me with your hatefulness, but still, like air, I'll rise."

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Christmas Wishlist - 2016 Edition

It's November and you all know what this means - it's officially socially acceptable to use the c-word. Christmas.

Yes, I'm one of those people who start listening to Christmas music and eating Christmas sweets pretty much on the first of November, and I'm always itching to get out all my Christmas decorations once Halloween is over. And what would make such an exitable person like me happier than writing their Christmas wishlist?

As I enjoyed writing my Christmas wishlist even more than I usually do this year as there's so many exciting things on it, I wanted to share it with you. I feel like I'm giving you a really deep look into my personality by doing this because I don't think any of you would have expected most of the things on it - so this shall be fun!

1. Simply Straight Hairbrush 

I don't have terribly curly hair, it's pretty straight on top but tends to become wavy at the bottoms, which can be super annoying - because of that, I was over the moon when I was introduced to this straightening hairbrush by my Mom!

It basically acts as a straightening iron but is used just like your normal hairbrush, which is extremly practical as you'll only have to brush through your hair more slower than you normally would and, by doing this, straighten it in the process! It also uses a lot lower temperatures which will be a lot healthier for my hair compared to my straigthening iron.

2. MAC Lipstick in 'Plum Dandy'

You can never have too many lipsticks, especially if they're by MAC. I love their lippies so much that they can you can pretty much always find one of them on my wishlists.
Plum Dandy is a shade that I discovered randomly by swatching lipsticks in store, and I instantly fell in love with it - it's a red/purple-ish shade that shimmers a tiny bit - perfect for the winter season, am I right?

3. Animal Crossing Happy Home Designer (3DS)

I'm super obsessed with Animal Crossing. Yup, I finally said it. I've loved this series ever since I was a little kid and it's been a companion of mine ever since, so I've been dying to try out the newest installment for the 3DS, which is called Happy Home Designer. 

The main thing about the game is that you get decorate and plan all of the characters' houses - which might probably sound extremly boring to most of you, but for the Animal Crossing and interior design lover in me, this is heaven.

4. Jemma's Girly Sticker Pack

In case you didn't know, Jemma sells the most adorable stickers ever in her Etsy shop. If I could, I would literally get all of the packs right here and now, but if I had to pick one to wish for, I'd definitely get the girly sticker pack - it's too die for.

5. Instax Mini 8 Camera

I've watched so many people treat themselve to these cameras during the past year or two, and I'm always so jealous when I see their cute polaroid photos. I want one. So badly. 

Imagine all the things you could do with the polaroids, like photo albums and various wall decorations. 

6. The Sims 4 - City Living (PC)

When I'm not playing Animal Crossing, I'm most likely playing The Sims. Much like my other favorite series, it's been a constant in my life pretty much ever since I was allowed to play games on the computer, and it's most definitely my all-time favorite past time and favorite way to procastinate all my responsibilities.

City Living is the newest expansion pack for The Sims 4, so to satisfy my inner nerd, this had to make the wishlist.

7. "The Name if the Rose" by Umberto Eco

Now, I know that this book is over a decade old and considered to be a classic by many, so why the hell haven't I read it yet? I really don't know.

But ever since my Latin teacher, who is into books at least as much as I am, told me about it and tried to pitch it to me, I've been super curious about it.

All I know about the plot is that it's set in a monastery, that someone is murdered in said monastery and that one of the monks tries to solve the murder mystery - but I'm hooked already.

8. Chanel Coco Mademoiselle EdT

Oh my life. Besides Marc Jacob's Daisy Dream, this is my all-time favorite perfume, even if I have never owned it myself. I remember my mother wearing it when I was little, and I'm actually upset that she doesn't wear it anymore because then I'd get to smell it more often.

It's has both citrusy and floral notes to it, which is basically everything I look for in a perfume. If only it wasn't this expensive. Well, a girl can hope, right?

9. "Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy" by Cassandra Clare

I've talked about my undying love for Cassandra Clare's writing on my blog several times, and as I love and devour her books, it's also a tradition for me to put her books onto any wishlist of mine.

This one is a collection of short stories centered around the characters from her The Mortal Instruments series (if you've never heard of it - read the books, watch the show, love it.) and is actually co-written by a lot of different authors.

Is there anything special you're wishing for this year?

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Recent Reads #14 - You Know Me Well

Remember that time when I talked about how I was going to turn my Recent Reads series into a bimonthly thing? Yeah, I kind of slipped up on that on the second issue for October. As I was ill, I just couldn't bring myself to shoot the photos and write the post - sorry about that!
However. I'm now back, better than ever, with one of my favorite books from this summer.

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When I picked up You Know Me Well by David Levithan and Nina LaCour I knew next to nothing about it as I wanted to be suprised when reading it by the pool in Tenerife, and let me tell you, I was suprised.

You Know Me Well follows the story of the two teenagers Mark and Kate.
 Mark is hopelessly in love with his best friend who is afraid to come out of the closet, yet occasionally hooks up with Mark without wanting any commitment.
Kate is in love with a girl she was only ever heard about but never met. Violet is her best friends' cousin, well-travelled and cultured and extremely intimidating. When faced with the opportunity to finally meet the girl of her dreams, Kate is more than overwhelmed and runs away.

When a series of incidents leads to a meeting between the two of them, a whirlwind friendship develops. Even though they hadn't ever talked to each other before, they grow extremely close to one another in the space of just one week as they learn about the other's past and become each other's support system as they try to tackle their more than complicated romantic relationships.


Something I instantly loved about this book was all the representation it offered. Both of the main characters are gay, a lot of their friends or other side characters are also part of the LGTB community and the book is set during Pride Week, which I found super cool. I've been trying to read more books that feature LGTB characters this year (such as The Art of Being Normal), and the immense amount of representation and pride to be found in this one was amazing.

I also found it really easy to relate to Mark, he seemed like such a real character and all of his emotions and actions were so understandable I sometimes felt like I could reach into the pages and give him a squeeze. I rooted for that boys from the first few pages on, y'all.
Kate is a very interesting character, especially because she's a talented artist and by the way her paintings were describe, I could imagine them so vividly I almost saw them, and I also enjoyed her storyline, but at times she was a little too headstrong for me to comprehend. But you know, that's alright because it's also part of her character.

The only thing I didn't particularly love about this book is the short timespan it is set in. That one week is just too little to watch all of the characters grow and their development unfold and leads to a lot of my questions unanswered. I would've loved to see more about all of these unique, quirky characters - and believe me, there's a lot of them - but there was so little time!


Overall, however, I think that this is such an adorable read for when you feel like reading but don't want to start a too demanding lecture - there's of course some drama, but most of all it's the incredibly sweet story of two people how accidentally become best friends filled with lots laughs as well.
You Know Me Well might come off as your typical YA book, but I'm sure that this is one that not only young readers might enjoy.

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Recent Reads is a bimonthly series and comes out on every first and third Wednesday of the month.
If you want to keep up with all my readings, you can add me as a friend on Goodreads as well!