the slightly anticlimatic unveiling...

because there are SO many people who are anxiously waiting to see what my living room now looks like, here you go...there are still some improvements i'm planning on making, but for now, i'm satisfied that it looks slightly decent as opposed to horrific...

next up, my bedroom...

home improvement, part one...

  you may be wondering why any college student would take on the task of painting/renovating their apartment during the summer. well, let me explain to you why, because the reason is simple: my apartment looked like THIS (see pictures above^^).

i'm pretty sure it had basically been ignored since 1970, which is both sad and upsetting. i chose to live here mostly out of desperation (i didn't have time to look for other apartments), so i guess it's my fault. it also gave me a reason to unleash my OCD interior design side.  i had always wanted to go into interior design, but sadly, BYU doesn't have the program. i had tolerated the state of my apartment for about a year, when all of a sudden one day i decided to ask my landlord if he would mind if i painted a little bit.  his response, and i quote, "This sounds perfect!  Please just subtract the supplies from your rent and send the receipts.  Keep it conservative so future tenants don’t hate things, but I trust your judgment." which to me read, "go for it". so i went out and bought all the supplies--paint, rollers, etc. but i couldn't bring myself to paint over disgusting, dirty walls.. 

so, true to my M.O., i got home from work one evening and couldn't stand it anymore. cleaning is my stress relief. it started in the bathroom, which was by far the worst part of the apartment.  i tore it apart--almost literally. i'm talking ripping caulk out of the shower, tearing up tiles, etc.  logan came over after he got off, and upon walking in the bathroom, immediately said, "we should paint today too." he's such a good sport, and a total stud for helping my crazy project ADD. so while i painted, he re-caulked everything.  our bathroom went from this:

to THIS:

after the bathroom came the living room...i cleaned EVERYTHING, rearranged the furniture, and then went to work painting.  i had always wanted to do tan with a red accent wall, and my dream finally came true...stay tuned for the unveiling! :)

soap.box.

since this is my blog, i'm going to go ahead and assume that it's safe for me to vent for a minute..if you don't want to deal with my venting, i suggest you stop readin. like NOW.

if you're still reading, then here we go. i'm so over people telling me that i don't take things seriously.  let's be clear here for a second.  i take just about everything i do seriously--school, my job, myself, life in general, and my relationship.  i get really annoyed when people feel the need to lecture me about how i need to be more grounded, serious, etc--especially when those people don't know me well enough to be hurling such accusations at me. i get lectured on a regular basis at work. AT WORK. and this person, who happens to be a coworker, is telling me that i don't take work seriously enough? maybe it's because i have said person talking my ear off for over an hour and a half. maybe it's because i feel like work should be the one place where i'm not criticized for my life choices. sure, i'm not perfect. but i also don't pretend like i am. yes, i know i have issues, vices, and hangups, but who doesn't? have i made mistakes? of COURSE. but i have a problem when people feel the need to be my parents. i have those already, and they give infinitely better advice than a stranger. i legitimately think the only reason this person has ANY reason to feel validated in giving me any kind of advice is because he is over a decade older than me. that is the only qualification he posses. not being more intelligent, experienced in life/relationships, or anything like that. and seeing as he doesn't know me quite as well as he seems to think, i feel like most of his advice is unfounded.  i think the only piece of advice that wasn't complete quackery was, "work on yourself". that is IT. the other hour and twenty five minutes i plan to ignore. why? because it was COMPLETELY OFF BASE. yes, i'm aware that i'm shouting a lot in this post, but i'm irritated. i feel like in the past 72 hours i've been lectured by far too many people who don't seem to realize that i'm 22 years old, not 15. believe it or not, i CAN make an educated, informed decision for myself, thank you very much. i appreciate suggestions and advice, but only when solicited. if i don't ask you for your opinion, that's a pretty good indication that i don't want to hear it.

i will leave you with one quote, and this will be one rant post i allow myself.
"Who are you to judge the life I live? I know I'm not perfect and I don't live to be, but before you start pointing fingers, make sure your hands are clean." ~Bob Marley


ok, so that's my diatribe for the day. dont hate me for it..or do, but don't lecture me about it.