life – Tales of A Curly Island Girl

What Controls You?

I had a conversation a couple of days ago with my coworker about food. She was on a 24 hour fast, and I was eating lunch and asking her if she felt hungry. She told me no, and the next day she came in and said she has extended her fast for 96 hours. Of course, I told her she was crazy, because I love to eat. We went outside to take a break and she continued to tell me how great she felt. She explained to me that this year she had decided to not let other people control the way she felt about herself and about her life, but she said it was so fitting that she decided to not let food control her during the fast.

She said she didn’t need to eat, because she wasn’t hungry. Everything she did revolved around eating and it was refreshing for her to remove that part from her day for a bit.

This got me thinking about my own life and what controls how I’m feeling. I’ve seen this post going around on social media about not letting one thing ruin your day by mistakenly festering on a small problem. Just to be completely honest, I’m going to list here the things that negatively control me right now as well:

Vaping
Work
Over-eating/not eating healthy
Making my own money (and over-spending)
Laziness/Lack of motivation

These are probably the 5 most controlling aspects of my life that make me unhealthy both physically and mentally. My excuse is always just saying I’ll start tomorrow, it’ll get better, or it could never get to that. Until I look in the mirror and see that it’s gotten to that point.

I’m working on it. I’m working on being a better me. I want to put more passion into what I do. I want to be healthier, so I can be happier! Isn’t that what we all want? Take some time to reflect on the negative things that control how you feel, how you react, and how you live.

Happy curl, happy Girl

Signing off,

Curly Island Girl

10 Things I Can’t Live Without

Besides the obvious, phone, husband, etc… Here’s a list of things I feel like I can’t do without:

Tweezers. My tweezermans to be exact. Even if I never had any wax or razors, I could always tweeze the hairiness away. It’s a really expensive brand, but I swear by this one. Any other, just doesn’t seem to grab any hairs. Tip: Disinfect them consistently. I keep alcohol wipes next to my makeup for this reason. *I’m really hairy.
Sweatpants. I love to wear sweatpants. It is the ultimate comfort clothes. It’s loose, it’s soft, and you don’t have to worry about being cold. Buy you some good sweatpants.
Moisturizer. Even if I am super oily, without my moisturizer (for my body and face) my skin would shrivel up. I have a mixture of products I use, currently most of it is Perfectly Posh.
Caffeine. I know it’s not healthy, but I do consume it every day. I drink energy drinks most of the time and tea in the morning and night. Until I wean myself off of it… It’s here to stay.
Flushable wipes. Let me just tell you, nothing feels better than using wipes to clean yourself after a number 2. Laugh all you want, but this is a lifesaver.
My NYX Micro-Brow Pencil. My brows have always had no shape. When I was younger I would over pluck them. Nowadays, it really has no shape unless I fill them in. I use this pencil every day. I could live without any other makeup but this product.
Nail polish. Just for my toes. My toes look like sausages without nail polish! My favorite brand is Essie and my favorite colors are pastels and browns/nudes.
Music. It just feels good, and there is always a song for everything you do. Currently my favorite songs are Hawaiian music, specifically Josh Tatofi. I listen to him every day.
Face masks. I use a face mask probably around 3 times a week. I love it. There’s nothing like painting it on your face. It’s so soothing to me. I have about 10 face masks (mostly from Perfectly Posh), and a stack of sheet masks.
Earrings. My face is pretty oval shaped, with my forehead being the biggest section. I only wear silver jewelry, so I have 3 sets of sterling hoops and many Koa wood pieces. Earrings always draws attention away from my forehead, so I constantly have some sort of ear jewelry on.

I know this was a different kind of post. I don’t even know how I feel about this. I guess its a Get To Know Me Better post.

Have a wonderful week back to school/work!

Happy curl, Happy Girl

Signing off,

Your Curly Island Girl

Growing Up?

Hi guys,

It’s been so long since I have sat in front of my laptop and wrote something. What’s been heaviest on my own heart, and in my own life right now, is my lack of spiritual and mental growth. No one tells you growing up means having to do things you don’t want to but need to for security in your finances. No one tells you growing up can mean you’re so busy that you can’t spend the time diving into what you really want to: books, reading, and writing. I feel like I have gained so much, a husband, a home, a new life, but I have lost some things along the way. I don’t like to say I have “lost” them, but I do feel like they have been archived to some level.

I want to not be so exhausted from working that I have no time to read. I want motivation to read and be lost in a book. I want to write more. It’s almost been a year that I have started Tales of a Curly Island Girl! I feel like I have so much more potential, but I feel like right now, I just can’t reach it. Although I feel like I am not doing enough, I am incredibly grateful to have a job that pays good, I have a happy home, and my relationship with my husband is the best I could ask for. I’m not even entirely sure why I am writing this. I almost want to delete this (or never post it). But for those who know or maybe don’t even know me personally and only know me as Curly Island Girl, maybe it’s best you see me vulnerable. We are only human. We have great potential, we have many reasons to be grateful, and I am. However, I feel like I need to do more. I need to push myself to be more. It doesn’t ever seem like I have that many hours in a day to do everything I could possibly want to do. I have anxiety about a lot of things, if something is going to happen, I feel the need to be meticulous about the planning and preparations. I just want to be better at making time to do the things I love and force myself to do something that is going to open my mind the way that college did. I miss it so much. I want to do something with my degree, and I feel like its being wasted away. Help! Most times I feel like I need help, haha.

At least I’m back writing! Thanks for letting me be vulnerable with you. I really hope I have something to discuss the next time I’m online. It’s been so long!!! We need to continue the conversations (Just Think About It).

Happy Curl, Happy Girl

Signing off,

Curly Island Girl

Quick Life Update: Apartment Hunting, Writing a Novel (?), Job Search

Aloha all,

It’s been about 2 weeks since I last blogged… and I’ve been busy, but also relaxing. Most of the things that are on my mind right now are my husband, Jane the Virgin, apartment hunting, my Harry Potter game app, writing, and job searching.

As most of you know, if you’ve been following me for quite some time, I just got married in May! It’s been almost two months and we are about to move back to Hawaiʻi. However, we still haven’t secured an apartment yet… gasp. We have just applied for one, and we are really excited. I am hoping and praying that we do get it. It’s in the perfect place, near to stores, his work, and one of my family members also live in the same area (like 3 minutes away). I’ve never applied for an apartment, it gave me so much anxiety, because I’ve also never had to adult like this. It’s very eye-opening.

Along with relaxing and enjoying no work for now and no school anymore (woohoo), I’ve decided to write in my spare time. I am only used to writing short stories, so I didn’t give myself a limit. I’ll just keep writing until I feel like it’s finished. It started as an influence of my husband and I’s early part of our relationship, then it began to spin into a sci-fi/romance sort of genre. I have really felt encouraged watching Jane the Virgin, haha. She is so motivated and good at writing, and I know she’s one a character on a television show, but I feel inspired by her.

As for job hunting: that’s not going as well as I would like it to. It sounds like it’s going to be really hard for me to find a first job doing something that utilizes my B.A. in English. If that’s how it is, then that’s how it’ll be. I can be a barista at Starbucks for now, haha. I just need to get a job to provide more income for both my husband and I, and to also start paying off my school loans. I know we will be alright, but I worry a lot that I can’t do this. I have never worked a real job, blessings all around to my friends and, especially, my family for making it possible to focus solely on school. I keep looking on apps and online at potential jobs, re-working my resume, gathering and making a portfolio of all my published works, etc.

To those who have been following my journey as a blogger; I appreciate you, always!

Happy Curl, Happy Girl

Signing off,

Curly Island Girl

Just Think About It: Living Life to the Fullest [A New Series!]

Aloha all!

I’m back and I have a new series for you…It’s going to be called: Just Think About It. A friend of mine found a list of philosophical questions and I’m going to dedicate this series to answering them (to the best of my ability). I want it to spark interest in your mind. I’m no philosopher, but I do pride myself in asking questions and actively searching for potential answers.

Here’s the question: What activities cause you to feel like you are living life to the fullest?

Let’s try to define what living life to the fullest even means. There are thousands of answers for this littered across the internet. Some say it’s the act of letting all inhibitions go in order to fully experience life. Some say it’s doing more than what we are just merely capable of.

When I think of “living life to the fullest,” I think of a wholesome life, one that makes me feel happy, one that makes me feel like I am making a difference, one that makes me feel like I am needed.

Activities that make me feel this way can be both small and large. Small things could be making a to-do list, and as the day goes by, slowly checking off each box. It could be shaving my legs after refusing to do so for a couple of months. It could be, finally, cleaning out my aromatherapy diffuser. The larger ones make me feel the best. Like, finishing that 15 page literature review. Washing all of my makeup brushes after a long three day event. Or, actively searching for a place to live when I get married and move out of my parents’ home.

I find joy in both small and large things. I think that’s what is generally able to keep me happy. Some people cannot find that sense of living through small, mundane things, which may make it seem to them that they are not doing anything worthwhile in their lives. An accomplishment, no matter how small, is still an accomplishment! I think people tend to forget about that.

For me, almost everything I do in a day makes me feel like I am living life to the fullest. Sometimes, even getting out of the bed in the morning does that too.

I hope that whatever you do, wherever you are at this point in time, brings you happiness, for others but also for yourself. Have a beautiful week!

Happy Curl, Happy Girl

Signing out,

Curly Island Girl