Awkward and Awesome

{Button-up: Tommy Hilfiger, Cardigan: Gap, Jeans: American Eagle, Boots: Steve Madden, Necklace: Aldo}

Awkward:
- The wave of nauseousness that sent me home for an unpleasant lunch hour. It's gone now, but my goodness was that unpleasant.
- Going skating for the first time in many years. I'm pretty sure that I looked like a baby giraffe trying to stand up for the first time when I was on the ice. A little sad considering I used to figure skate competitively. Yeah, it's been that long. But! I managed not to fall, which is always a plus.
- Not falling while skating, but when I got home I slipped on the ice two steps from my front door and landed right on my back. Hello, bruised hand and back.
- Falling, again, the next morning on my way to work and cutting my foot bad enough for it to start bleeding. Then, not noticing the gushing blood until later and realizing that I had been walking around the office like that for at least twenty minutes. Gross.


Awesome:
- It snowed like crazy this week! I'm so happy because for a little while there I thought I was going to go a year without seeing snow. And that would just not have been awesome.
- Getting to go see my sister, brother-in-law, and adorable niece this weekend! She's started to stand up!
- Peanut butter, jam, and banana sandwiches. I have been loving them lately - especially with my mom's homemade jam. Yumm.
- Dreading the idea of wiping all the snow and ice off my car and then discovering that my coworker went ahead and did it for me!
- Reading a really great book. {"Five Quarters of the Orange," by Joanne Harris that my mom gave me to read ages ago}
- Doing a pre-spring cleaning of my house. I realize cleaning may not be "awesome" for many people, but I find it very cathartic.
- The number of people on my staff team that are applying to return for the next school year. It makes me happy to know how many of them have enjoyed their year enough to want to come back and do it all again.

The Return

{from here}

I was going to post my resolutions today, but then I noticed that Sydney had returned to her weekly Awkward & Awesome posts - and I've decided to follow in suite. So, without further ado, here they are:

Awkward
- Last week we held a staff rejuvenation training session in an unfamiliar building. On my way to the bathroom I had a passing conversation with one of my staff members. As I proceeded to enter the bathroom, I heard some weird yelling but didn't think anything of it. As soon as I entered the bathroom I heard a loud eruption of yelling and cheering. I then thought to myself simultaneously, "What is all that noise?" and "Why does it smell so bad in here." As I turned to leave the bathroom to investigate the noise outside, I see a urinal in the corner of my eye. I was in the men's washroom, which also explained my two previous questions. I quickly owned my mistake and proceeded to the women's room, right next door. Now. One might think this story would be over. But no. No it is not. When I left the gender-appropriate bathroom, I was greeted by 34 staff members who had collectively creating a human tunnel right outside the door that I had to run through in order to get out. A really swell group of students, really.
- After a security breach at the university {not so awesome}, I have had to call several different companies trying to ensure that my personal information is safe. It's a very strange feeling trying to explain to someone in India that I am, in fact, who I say I am.
- Walking into another human being at Starbucks. Let me fix that. Walking into another human being so awkwardly that I actually squished her into a corner between the door and a garbage can.

Awesome
- Tonight's return of 30 Rock.
- Receiving a few more Middleton-related compliments this week. They actually make my day.
- This weekend's forecast: A mix of sun and snow. And hopefully it will look like the above.
- The pop up dinosaur card I made for a coworker yesterday. I wish I took a picture, that T-Rex was adorable.
- Good news stories, like people building an orphanage in Haiti, people still making a big push to donate to food banks in January, and other heart-warming stories.
- I still have all my holiday decorations up. Mini christmas trees, twinkling lights, center pieces, snowmen bowls, pretty much everything that I had up in December. And they may not come down until February...

One Summer Day

Awkward:
- I've joined a gym. I've never been a gym frequenter. I'm not a fan of being stared at while I sweat.
- The strange, tetris-esque, tan lines I keep adding to.
- That time I went for a run but accidentally forgot to stretch beforehand {I thought I did!} and then was left to walk like a penguin for several days afterwards. Stretching is important, people!
- Unintentionally singing Tequila Makes Her Clothes Fall Off in public.
- How much I love doing laundry and washing the dishes. They are my favorite chores.
- The fact that I have "favorite chores." I'm such a neat freak.

Awesome:
- Taking a jaunt around campus as if I haven't lived here for the last four years. I meandered around, walking with no real direction, and took pictures as I went. I always felt weird taking pictures of my campus, worrying that someone might think I'm a tourist. But the other day it hit me. Who cares if someone thinks I'm a tourist?! and off I went. It was an excellent day.
- Leaving for San Francisco for a week on Saturday! I've been reading my good ol' Lonely Planet guide for weeks and I can't wait to finally experience all the things I've been reading about!
- The Season Premier of Rookie Blue. It's absolutely my favorite summer show. If you haven't seen it, you need to . It's possibly the best tv show to come out of Canada since Battlestar Galactica. Yes. I like BSG. Okay... maybe this should go under awkward now.
- Getting a little "My Favorite Customer" package from one of the baristas at my Starbucks. I'm treated so well over there. Note: learning your barista's name and making a point to ask them how their day is going will go a long way. 
- Summer baseball games.

A Belated Awkward and Awesome

{Cami: Garage, Sweater: Old Navy, Jeans: American Eagle, Belt: Vintage, Shoes: Payless, Ring: RW&Co., Nail Color: OPI Glitzerland}

I realize I missed yesterday's Awkward and Awesome Thursday, but since I was busy HITTING A MILESTONE, I've decided it would be okay to do it today.
This week is strange since I have no awkwards. Well, awkwardness did occur, but my awesome overshadowed them all...

Awesome:
- I wrote my last final ever last night. I AM OFFICIALLY DONE MY UNDERGRAD. 
DONNNNNE! 
Although I won't cross the stage until November (I missed the Spring ceremony by two weeks) I am still beaming with excitement over my newfound freedom. It sounds a little cheezy, but after reading and writing about other peoples' history for four years, I'm excited to finally feel like I can start creating my own.

On another note, this outfit was from two days ago. And it comes with a confession: this sweater is four years old and this is my first time wearing it. I remember the day I picked it up. My mom told me it was very "Karla" so I bought it. Every time I put it on, however, I've been at a loss as to what to wear under it so I end up changing into something else. It's the kind of thing I would normally just donate but I've never been able to give it up. So when I saw it sitting there on the shelf I found myself committed to make it work. It turns out it wasn't all that difficult after all. It also means that you might be seeing it around here more often.

Happy Weekend!

Wicked

{Cami: Target, Blazer: TNA via Aritzia, Jeans: Citizens of Humanity, Shoes: Payless, Belt: vintage}

Awkward:
- Bringing my laptop to class but forgetting to turn off the sound so when I open it up country music starts blaring.
- Going to watch my friends' baseball games, but not fully understanding baseball terms so I'm restricted to yelling players names and jumping up and down in excitement. I think the other team members have now accepted my strange antics, but for a few weeks  there I was getting some very confused looks. 
- Singing to myself very loudly because I am currently the only one living in my building. Forgetting that sometimes workmen have to enter the building. They have great timing - they always enter right when I start belting the song. Lovely.
- Being asked out by men twice my age. My count is at two in the last three weeks. I really do not understand it. Sorry, but I'm really not interested.


Awesome:
- Going to see Wicked with my parents last night. It. Was. Fantastic! My ninth grade self would have been soo jealous.
- Getting back into the swing of Awkward and Awesome posts. 
- Doing some planning for the trip my awesome parents are taking me on at the end of this month in celebration of my upcoming graduation!
- Finding a dress in your closet that you forgot you bought three months ago. Then remembering that you got it on sale.
- The persistent countdown that I have for this last class of mine. Three classes and the final... three classes and the final.
- Did I mention that I got to go see Wicked last night?! Yeah. That was AWESOME.
- That it's finally getting warm out - those beach days are getting so close!

It's the last day of classes!

{Dress: Spank, Cardigan: American Eagle, Belt: vintage.}

Today is LDoC. I cannot believe my fourth year is actually coming to an end. I also can't believe it's been an entire week since my last post - I suppose that may have had something to do with the fact that classes were ending. I finished my last class about an hour ago, and now I get to go out and enjoy an outdoor concert with my friends in the sunshine. I'm lucky I get to enjoy the beauty that is spring right now because, unlike others, my self-induced exam hibernation period doesn't start until next week. 

I love this time of year.

Since it's thursday, after all, I really only have one thing to say for today's Awkward and Awesome:

- Last Day of Classes. Awesome.

{check out that blue sky!}

a Sunny Disposition

{Dress: Kohl's, Cardigan: Hollister, Blazer: TNA via Aritzia, Shoes: vintage}

I wore this dress with the cardigan all morning and afternoon and loved how flowy it all was. I had a recognition night to attend this evening, so I traded the cardigan in for my blazer and it worked swimmingly!

Awkward:
- Having the silliest - but most realistic - nightmare that involved me getting into a whole lot of trouble at my job. $1.25 million worth of trouble. I woke up literally in fear for my job.
- When people look at me like I'm crazy when I tell them I like mini fruit marshmallows. They are so good!
- There are two girls who live in the same area as I do, who apparently look like me. They are referred to as "Karla's twins." Apparently, they look so much like me, that people often approach them creepily, or yell at them from across a common area, or sneak up to them, cover their eyes with their hands and say "guess who," only to discover that these girls are not me. I feel bad for them. And I would like to take this moment to apologize for having such creepy, awkward, and embarrassing friends. {I cannot control their actions - I swear.}
- Singing along to a little TSwift, when someone knocks on my door to ask me to sing less loud, because she's watching a movie. A Miley Cyrus movie, to be exact. I don't know who was more embarrassed at the end of that interaction.


Awesome:
- The Peanut Butter Cups I made earlier this week. I may or may not have loved them so much that I made another batch...
- The big annual intramural sports event that happens at my school at this time every year. I've come to recognize it as the beginning of summer. People sitting out on the knoll, soaking up the sunshine and watching other people exercise. Awesome.
- This dress. Who knew I would not only love, but own something Lauren Conrad designed?
- Really enjoying my classes and readings as of late, almost to the point where I don't want classes to end. Almost.
- And on that note... SUMMMMMMMMER!


Side note: I want.

Casual Thursday

{Tshirt: American Apparel, Jeans: American Eagle, Scarf: vendor on campus, Shoes: Keds}

Thursdays are the least busy day of my week. That way I am able to properly prepare and rest up so that I can really enjoy my 'day of relaxation': Friday. Pre-rest is really important.
In view of this, I woke up this morning wanting a really chill outfit. And what's more chill than an american apparel tshirt and jeans? Nothing. Except maybe my onesie. But that's a whole other story.

Awkward:
- The fact that I just shared with you all that I own a onesie.
- Me: "How are you?" Coworker: "I'm good, how are you?" Me: "Good, good. And you? ... I mean..." Apparently I just really wanted to know how he was doing.
- Seeing your friend walk by outside, so you run to the window and yell a semi-inappropriate inside joke across the courtyard only to notice that it was not, in fact, the person you thought it was.

Awesome:
- I have less than two weeks of class left!
- I'm going curling for the first time on Monday. I'm excited. Wish me luck. {note: it's very possible that this excursion will end up belonging in the Awkward category.} I'll keep you posted.
- Killing it at a casino night I attended tonight for my job. By the end, I didn't even have to yell "Big Money, Big Money" at the top of my lungs. I was that good.
- Springtime!

Awkward and Awesome

{Top: Roxy, Blazer: TNA via Aritzia, Jeans: Mavi, Scarf: Le Chateau, Belt: thrifted, Shoes: Joy & Peace.}

Awkward
- Playing solitaire alone in my room {because it's fun, people} and having someone knock on your door. You answer and they ask you what you're up to. You reply, "I'm playing solitaire."They say, "you're sitting in your room alone and playing solitaire?" You have no response.
- When I act out inside jokes with a friend. Across a giant common area filled with people staring at us thinking we look crazy. We do.
- Always mouthing the words to musicals while I watch them. It's a habit I can't control. I rarely even realize I'm doing it unless someone points it out to me. And someone always does.

Awesome
- The line in my Starbucks that was somehow timed perfectly as to allow me to land at the til right at 2pm and receive a free treat! I didn't think I was going to get one at all because I arrived early. Although I wasn't heartbroken by this, it was still a very pleasant surprise when the little Salted Caramel square was handed to me. Free of charge.
- My new camera
- Finishing The Hunger Games
- Slowly but surely making progress on my resume. An unpleasant, but necessary task that is almost complete.

it's a good day to be awkward and awesome

{Cami: Gap, Cardigan: Talula, Jeans: Mavi, Necklace: The Bay}

Awkward:
- Sitting in class next to a guy you know through your best friend's boyfriend, but you're not actually friends with/don't know if he knows who you are. I still haven't decided if I should say hello or not. So, I very well could just seem like a jerk.
- My supervisors and coworkers have all started calling my "Mad Dog," the nickname given to me by my boss's boss. Awkward. I tried owning it and calling myself Mad Dog in hopes that it would make it less fun for them, but it backfired and perpetuated the problem further.
- The fact that I've had Pink's "Raise Your Glass" playing on repeat for the last 24 hours.

Awesome:
- Successfully completing the 30 for 30 challenge!
- ... and with that, getting to attack the rest of my closet after ignoring it for the last month.
- Having all my staff members receiving calls that they have been rehired/promoted by the department for next year  - such a happy time!
- How unbelievably chill this last week has been.
- Celebrating my brother's 23rd birthday with him this weekend. This is the first year I've gotten to do so - he's not that big on birthdays.

day twentyfour.

{Sweater: TNA via Artizia, Tshirt: Gap, Jeans: Citizens of Humanity, Scarf: vendor on campus.}

Awkward:

- My crazy self on tuesday night. I had so much energy/feelings of freedom after handing in my last paper that morning, that I didn't even know what to do with myself. I think I confused my staff during our meeting by being super excited about EVERYTHING we talked about. And by finding everything amusing. Professional = my middle name.

- The frequency at which I email myself while sleeping. I sometimes wake up in the middle of the night with a "very urgent message" to remember the next morning. In my half conscious state, I proceed to email myself from my phone in an excess of incoherent sentence fragments. Last term it resulted with my giving the title, "It's Justin Bieber's world, we're just living in it" to my final paper for an Urban Geography class. Seriously, I can't make this stuff up. I don't even know that I've listened to one of his songs. I call this person "Sleepdrunk Karla" because, although I'm asleep, the messages appear to have been written by a very intoxicated person who is not me and cannot spell.

- I think the two stories above are awkward enough to last an entire month or two.

Awesome:

- All the sunshine we've had this week! It really does have the power to put a girl in the best mood.

- Actually being able to do some recreational reading yesterday evening. So great.
- How every time I put on this sweater, I am reminded of how warm and comfortable it is. And that I really don't wear it as much as I should.
- Inside jokes. Period.

- Finding new blogs I love by following the comments posted on here. Exhibit A: Better Than Bland (PS, Erin, based on your references to Gilmore Girls, Trading Spaces, and Martha Stewart, I'm fairly certain we're the same person. Cool.)

day ten.

{Cami: Banana Republic, Cardigan: H&M, Jeans: Citizens of Humanity, Flats: Payless, Belt: was once my mother's, Necklace: H&M}

Awkward:
- Me and my lack of upper body strength carrying 40lbs of candy and chocolate across campus this morning for a Candy Gram program for Valentines Day that I'm coordinating. {a sneak peek at a portion of said candy can be seen above}
- So. I have a few television shows that I really, really, like. I like them so much that I own the seasons on dvd and watch them on a continuous loop. I'm also really good at memorizing quotes from these shows. The thing is, I know these shows so well that sometimes they permeate my reality. What do you mean, Karla? Well. More often than I would like, I'll be talking to people in real life and the stories from these shows will impede my memory. I'll start a sentence with, "Oh yeah, that happened to a friend of mine too!" only to realize that my "friend" was actually Rory Gilmore and not someone I know personally. This has proven to be a very awkward problem.
- When my boss sent me an email while I was in class today and it included an inside joke that I didn't understand at first. Then I did and I laughed really loudly. This would have been much less awkward if the lecture I wasn't on the topic of slavery.

Awesome:
- The Book of Awesome by Neil Pasricha {shown above} have you heard of it? Cuz it's awesome.
- The break from classes I have all next week!
- Picture a university professor of British origin, mid-50s. Impeccably groomed. On a typical day he will wear a pressed collared dress shirt, slacks with a perfect seam down each leg, a properly cut jacket, and a bow tie. Now. Picture that same prof. wearing this. But less nautical, and more Snoopy. Shocked? So. Was. I. Shocked and confused and amazed that the gentleman described was actually my North American Architecture and Design professor. In a patchwork Snoopy and Woodstock sweater. I'm still dumbfounded by his awesomeness.
- The changes I've been making around here. Conquering html is the best feeling ever. What do you think of the partial redesign? Please let me know if you have any feedback/suggestions!
- In case you've never visited it before, I feel like everyone should read this. It's awesome.