Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes!!!

Did you get my masterful musical reference that I put in the title? Eh? Anyone?

And are any of you noticing that Kenra has not failed at her goals for vlogging or blogging at least once a week. I know, I can't believe it either. I've even astounded myself a few times by doing two in a week. Breathe, it's okay, it threw me for a loop too. XD

So this week I have some big news to share you. I meant to share it last week, but I didn't like the idea of me just posting something on Facebook and leaving it at that, although that is why Facebook was made...huh...I think I'm blowing this out of proportion. *shrugs* Oh well! Anyways, the big news is (drum roll please)........I GOT A NEW JOB!!!!

After two and a half years working at Wangsgards, I have finally put the apron on the hook and dusted my hands off to look for something new, and I did find something new. I'm now an official customer service representative of Great Western Insurance Company. YAAAY!!!

Even though the last few months at Wangsgards were hard and very trying for me, I will always look back on those years with incredible fondness. A lot of you right now are probably backing up in your chair, thinking, "But Kenra, you hated Wangsgards. You complained about it all the time." It's true, I did complain a lot about retail, but I find that the best stories to tell (at least in my personal experience) were the ones that were bad experiences, which tends to leave a poor impression on my work experience. Sure, there were days that I was thoroughly convinced that I'd throw my uniform on the ground and exclaim, "I quit!" But the next day I'd find myself laughing with my produce team and wondering why I'd ever consider such a thing, I love my job! When it comes to retail, there are times where you love your job, and there are times where you hate your job. For me, what made the job worthwhile were the loyal customers and the loyal coworkers. I worked in the produce department as the assistant manager. For the longest time I was the only girl on the team, and I actually loved it. I felt like I was Wendy with my lost boys (not really), but we had such a great time and there was never any drama, and we made a great team. My team has changed a lot, and right before I left we had only two boys and four girls! Crazy right? I had the best managers, four to be exact in the produce department. Each one of them were amazing amazing people. If I think you'd be entertained by it, I'd include all of the amazing things Will, Seth, Trevor, and Veronica did for me, but I'll just leave it with that I think they are all simply the most best and brilliant people in the whole entire universe and I miss all of them a whole bunches.

And I miss my boys, Cameron, Trevor, Eriq, and my one girl Syrina. They were my produce family. We had such a great time goofing off in the back, making air bands, swords fights, and painting the back room with punk music blasting. We had such a great time and I don't think I've laughed as often as I did when I was with those hooligans.

And I had my other department friends, friends I could escape to when I needed a good conversation. Laura, Melanie and Karla, Kirsten, Paige, Mel, Carole, Doug, Dwayne, Nathan, Larry, Izma, Laura, Dee, Ray, Pam, Iris, Evelyn, Joann, Marie, Ashley, Peri, Adam, Sarah, Bryan, Ryan, Jen, Travis, Mainor, Estella. These guys are a little piece of my Wangsgards family.

So you're probably asking, "Why did you leave?"

And to that I really can only respond with, sometimes the best thing for you isn't necessarily where you feel at home. Sometimes, you need to break free of your comfort zone to find new ground to bury your roots in. It doesn't mean you have to cut ties with the old roots, I have every intention of sticking close to Wangsgards so I can hear all the drama and good news. But I knew that staying there would only stunt my progress in the long run. I felt safe there, but that wasn't what I needed. I needed to find somewhere that I can further my experience, spread my wings a little bit wider and stretch my neck a bit more. I needed to progress, and that is what life is all about, progression.

I have every hope that Great Western Insurance Company will allow me to do those very things. It was scary when I walked into the office and didn't recognize a single face, it was daunting to realize that I couldn't sneak over to tell the bakery ladies how nervous I was, and I suddenly felt stupid for giving up my Wangsgards family for a bunch of strangers that probably wouldn't like me.

How silly I was.

It's been only three days since then, but already I'm beginning to feel my toes settling into the soil. I'm beginning to feel more at ease and I'm realizing just how amazing my new team is. These guys, I'm optimistic that I'll find a small family in them too. I'm optimistic that I can progress here. The information is overwhelming and the work is tedious, but I can feel that I'm going to do great here. Sure, I'll still miss things about Wangsgards, but I didn't leave there to forget about it, I left to take what I learned from there and implement it into my future.

To anyone who has become "comfortable" or "safe" in their setting and looking for progression in your life where there is none, I challenge you to uproot yourself and find a new place to grow, take what you've learned from where you are and take a step forward. Life is set up in stages, how long are you going to stay in Act I? It's definitely a terrifying thing to step out of your comfort zone, but in the end you'll find yourself on top.

Let me know in the comments below if you ever had to go through a big change in your life! Thanks for stopping by!

Videos That Make Me Happy

So it has been a very crazy week. I got a new job (blog post coming soon about that), I'm quitting my old one, and I haven't had a spare moment to myself to binge on Star Trek. I know, how much more pathetic can that be? But seriously, it's Star Trek, can you really blame me?

Well I have finally found a spare moment to myself and I'm sharing it with you! But as soon as I'm finished I'm going to go into a Star Trek coma. Sigh.....

Throughout this stressful week, there has been one thing that has helped me to stay sane. Most people know this about me already, but I am obsessed, unabashedly addicted to YouTube. Every spare three minutes I have, I use it to watch other people's life, while wasting my own. BUT, in my defense, I have started my own YouTube channel, and I have a blog, I'm still living!

For me, YouTube is great place to escape and to find a sample of joy. It's inspiring to me, to watch people, normal people like me, go and try new things. They are daring, adventurous, and so personable. I can relate to so many people on the internet.

And with my addiction being about three years old, I thought I'd share with you a rather large list of videos that have kept my frown upside down and lifted my spirits. These tend to be videos that I return to over and over and over again, because they make me happy and remind me that life doesn't need to be glum, and that's it okay that I'm not perfect. Please, read this post at your own paste, choose what you want to watch and just allow yourself to escape for awhile.

(I'm also going to showcase some of my favourite YouTubers, because they deserve all the credit and they are my heroes!)

Dan and Phil
If you spend a lot of time on the internet, especially YouTube, you've probably at least heard of the infamous British duo, Dan and Phil. These two boys have made me laugh so so so so so so hard so many times. They are my comic relief and there are so many videos I could share, but I'll only share two. I know I have a lot of self control.

Every year, Phil and Dan do something called Phil Is Not On Fire where they answer questions from their fans, but they make it the most epic comedic compilation I have ever seen. And it is tradition for them to paint cat whiskers on their face. #friendshipgoals

My other favourite is when they were challenged by Krave to do some crazy weird games. This one below is my favourite of their challenges. It also features my other favourite British boy, PJ.

This next one is also a British vlogger. Carrie Hope Fletcher (Itswaypastmybedtime) is considered to be the big sister of YouTube, the one who just sort of loves you no matter what and she gives a lot of inspiring videos. Here are two that I simply love.

Isn't she just amazing? I love her. She has a book that is pretty much her vlogging to your through her ink. I got if for Christmas and love it. It's called All I Know Now.

Shawna and Tessa are two vloggers that I have been watching since I was in seventh grade. Known as Meekakitty and Nanalew, these two are Canadian vloggers. Below are a game they played together. #friendshipgoals

And since we're still on Tessa, I'm going to show you a few of her personal videos that have kept me going. 

Finally, an American vlogger! Meet Olan Rogers, I have a major crush on this man and his adorable laugh and smile. This is the friendliest most sincere person I know and I think of a bottle of ever glowing sunshine when I think of him. He is so funny, so nice, so dedicated and gracious and he's always thanking his fans for being simply awesome. I love this man. I plan to meet him one day and just hug him. Am I allowed to do that?

For some reason it won't let me show you my favourite videos: Rollin With Olan episode 5 and 6, so google it and watch them. They are so cute. But above is probably his most popular video, Ghost in the Stalls.

Christina Grimmie is also one that I have been watching since probably eighth grade, she is a singer and is a major inspiration to me. She and I are both major Zelda fans, and I loved that she is such a geek, yet also so stylish and friendly and open, I just love her so much and am so proud of her for being so successful in her music.

And finally this isn't by any of my favourite vloggers, but it's one that I love and watch a lot. It's a video by David Bowie and Mick Jagger. I watch it probably once a month to keep my spirits going. It makes me so so so so so so happy. I wish I had dance moves like these guys. If you decide to watch anything from this blog post, watch this one, it's my life motto, and my anchor that keeps me grounded. No joke. I'm obsessed.

Wasn't that just the best thing you've ever seen? Please tell me you loved it!!!

Well that is all my friends, I'm now going to to binge on some Star Trek. It's been a long time coming and I'm looking forward to my Spock/Kirk/Bones bonding time!!! Yay!

The Books of January

The remaining hours of January are coming to a close and I thought that I'd spend it quickly sharing the books that I read this month. This month for some reason made me very stressed, and when I'm stressed I either don't read at all, or I read a lot. And this month, I read. A.  Lot. I read a total of 10 books in this month. Holy Crap! I haven't done that since before I had a job. I think I also had a realization that I'm never going to have the time that I want to read so it's best to utilize the time that I am offered versus complaining that I don't have enough time. So I hope I can keep this up!

Disclaimer: I didn't finish all of the books listed on here, so to be honest I probably only read 9 books. I felt that I needed to be honest with you. Phew, glad that is off of my chest!

So here is what I read for January 2016

The Hunger Games Trilogy
I read this series all the way for the first time. Ever. Crazy right? I admit I was kind of a hater on the Hunger Games. I tend to be the kind of person that detests what's trending because it undermines everyone else's hard work. Like did you know the final Artemis Fowl book and the third Fablehaven was released the same year as the Hunger Games? Probably not because you were too caught up in the Hunger Games. So, junior high Kenra resented the fact that my books weren't given as much attention as the stupid book that killed children. Yep. I was a major hater. I even read the first book so that I wouldn't be a hypocrite and hated every moment of it, but I did so I could prove my point.

Obviously Kenra has grown up since then and has either lost all morals or has a more open mind, your pick. So I decided to try them without the intent of proving any point at all, I was literally intrigued to read them for what they were and not for what everyone else took them for.

I'm not going to lie. These books will never be my favourite series like they are for other people, and they didn't make my heart pound like say Harry Potter or The Tiger's Curse books will. I admire it for the writing style. Suzanne Collins has an impressive skill with words that made you want to keep reading. To some it would be seen as an addiction. I tended to be immune, but I could see how people would be swept up in Katniss's world and completely immersed in it.

The characters were conflicting for me. I felt like they were kind of bland, but I think I may be mistaken looking back. In their setting, the characters of District 12 really aren't living the typical life of an American teenager. They grow up before they are supposed to, and they aren't given an opportunity to make mistakes and find a mold that fits their personality. I mistook fear and caution for blandness and lack of character. As I read further, I began to realize that, and I really appreciated the subtle touch of detail that Collins made. It made complete sense.

The story really made me think about a lot of things. It's a very thought provoking tale. It makes you question that fine line between what is right and what is wrong. Who is good and who is bad? And where do you draw the line when it comes to your morals when your life is on the line? I began to compare my job to me being Katniss fighting against the Capitol. There are parallels in this world that are frighteningly similar.

I thought that with the foreknowledge that the final book was the worst, I'd be okay reading it. But everyone was right, the ending was terrible. Everything Katniss had fought for was destroyed and suddenly everything that had happened in the series seemed completely meaningless. You mean to tell me I spent ten hours reading this for nothing?!?! That's pretty much how I felt. All of my favourite characters were dead, and the main character had turned into a mess. It was kind of disappointing, but also very poignant. How often do we have soldiers come home that deal with the same sort of feeling, to return with nothing but scars and nightmares? It's those bitter moments that actually made me really appreciate this story. Collins dealt with very difficult things with tasteful care, she was very realistic in that sense.

Final Remarks: While I give a lot of praise to the series, I still stick to what I said before. This will never be my favourite series. I understand and am empathetic to the characters and why they do what they do; but I tend to stray to positive and more fantastical stories to escape. I didn't really feel like I actually escaped to anywhere good when I read the Hunger Games. Books are mini vacations, and in all reality, Panem is a pretty suckish vacation location.

Dragonsdale
Written by two english men under the alias Salamandra Drake, this story was very sweet and tender. I had purchased it from a thrift store about a year ago and hadn't had the opportunity to read it until now, thanks to my book jar. The cover is very enticing because of the binding, it has a cover that wraps around the side and makes it seem like the dragon is coiling around the book. It is a very delightful cover. (Kudos to the graphic designers of that.) And it's GREEN! My favourite color. There's never anything to complain about when the cover is green.

This story is about a young girl named Cara who lives on a dragon ranch of sorts called Dragonsdale, her father is the dragonmaster and manages the dragons. Cara is a stable hand there and works alongside her friend Breena. Many young students train riding their dragons at Dragonsdale, except Cara. Her father, Huw, has instructed her to never ride a dragon after her mother was killed in a dragon riding accident.

And here's where you've probably guessed where the story is going to go. A baby dragon is rescued from outside Dragonsdale. He is named Skydancer and Cara is instantly attached to him. She visits him as often as she can and just adores him. And he adores her. But the spoiled rich Hortense has her eyes on Skydancer as well and demands to ride him to spite Cara. I'll refrain from telling you more except for that Cara eventually flies with Skydancer in secret and she vows to never stop flying because she loves it so much.

This story is written for a younger audience, but I thoroughly enjoyed the story. It had a mixture of tender, humorous, and bittersweet moments that gave it a balanced feeling. There are illustrations throughout that keep the reader enticed and it really adds to the whole aesthetic of the book. I love the characters. They are all delightfully lovable (except Hortense) I think Wony, a rather clumsy and not-very-confident dragon student at Dragonsdale is my favourite, she had a sort of cute patheticness that made me like her.

The story is simple, yet one that never loses its spark (did you catch the pun?).

The Selection
I have a cousin that is obsessed with this series and she demanded I read them. I had always been intrigued by this series, but I had convinced myself I didn't have time to read it (though I had time to read over all of my favourite scenes of Tiger's Curse...riiiggghhhttt Kenra, no time). So with that push from my cousin, I finally started them.

It's a dystopian novel, a genre I tend to avoid, but I was actually proud of how Keria Cass handled the society and setting of the story. While it certainly wasn't a perfect government, I felt as if the royal family of Ilea in this series was trying to do the right thing versus the usual dystopian society where there is a corrupt leader with their fist around the people, squeezing the poor and destitute dry. But who knows, I've only read the first book, I could be completely mistaken.

Ilea is set so that their are eight different castes that people are classified in. The higher the number, the better off you are, sound familiar? Our main character, America Singer, is a five, and a musically inclined, lovestruck girl. She is convinced she's going to marry her secret boyfriend, Aspen, who is a six.

The crown prince Maxon is eligible for marriage and so all the women of Ilea above the age of sixteen are invited to apply to be the future princess and bride of the prince. 35 girls will be selected and they will live in the castle with the prince until he eliminates all of them but one who will be his final choice and future bride. America applies with urging from Aspen and her family and surprise surprise! She's selected. Are you surprised?

At this point, America kind of bugged me; but as soon as she left home and she was given the opportunity to prove her kindness and self-confidence, I realized I sort of liked America's spunk. She was convinced she wasn't going to win, so why should she try so hard? I appreciated that mindset, it wasn't naive or starstruck. And I loved that she befriended Maxon versus swooning in his arms. She really doesn't have an attraction to him (yet). They support each other as real friends would, and I loved that.

The first book, not a lot happens, but it really sets the story up for the next books, which I will be reading very very soon. So look forward to that!

Monster High
I started the Monster High series in December, but finished them in January. Let me just tell you, for a sassy book that's pretty much about cliques and gossip and fashion and all that shallow stuff, I kind of love these books. Maybe it's the fight for equal rights for monsters. Maybe its the clever puns that Lisi Harrsion incorporates in the story. Maybe it's the bubbly and unique characters. I don't really know what it is, but I love this series. It's spunky, lighthearted, funny, sassy, and underneath the shallow appearance, it has a heart of gold.

Lisi Harrison was hired to write the books to kick off the release of the doll series, Monster High. The books are nothing like the movies and web series that were also released by Mattel. Maybe that's why the books aren't as popular as they could be. It focuses on Frankie Stein, Melody Carver, Cleo De Nile, Clawdeen Wolf, and Draculaura in their adventures trying to fit in with the humans and fighting for their rights to be monsters without having to hide their freaky flaws.

I don't have much to say but that I think these are really quirky books. I do warn you that the fourth and final book is very different from the first three and was rather disappointing. Everyone seemed to be very out of character and it bugged me. So if you follow my advice, you'll only read the first three. Just kidding, there are still some cute parts in the fourth one. But only a few.

Ingo
I read this in junior high and I honestly only remember that there were mermaids in it, the end. I found this at the library and just had to read it again. I'd like to think that this isn't your typical mermaid book. Technically they aren't even called mermaids in this series, and they were very private and mysterious creatures.

Sapphire and Conor Trewhella's father disappears one day without explanation. While their mother and neighbors are convinced that Matthew Trewhella was probably tossed out of his boat and killed, the two children are convinced that their father isn't dead. A year passes, and Sapphire notices that Conor leaves for long periods of time without explanation. Fearing that her brother will leave her too, she stalks him from their house to the beach. She isn't able to catch up with him, but is instead met with a young merboy, called Faro. He takes her on an adventure through the depths of the ocean. He is convinced that Sapphire is a part of Ingo, the heart of the sea. After her adventure, Sapphire is drawn to the sea every moment of every day and is becoming dissociated with her family.

This story doesn't conclude at all in the first novel. Much like the Selection, it sets everything up for the adventure that I'm sure will happen in the other two books. Not very many characters were introduced, and no one knows why Matthew left, why Conor or Sapphire are a part of Ingo, we don't even really know what Ingo is. It was a slow-paced story, and it lack excitement for me. I'm hoping that the next ones pick up.

Wake
I'm amazed that I actually read this book all the way through. Sorry, but I thought it was kind of stupid. I admit, I liked the characters, some of them. But I found it lacking the depth I was hoping for.

Gemma is a gifted swimmer and can't get enough of the sea. Three mysterious girls are drawn to her and ask her to join their group. Gemma, a little weirded out, refuses, but the strange girls continue to pop up. Gemma's older sister, whose name I have forgotten, is very protective and is the mom figure of the story (their mother lives in a group home after a car accident injured her brain). She is worried about Gemma. Stuff goes down, Gemma has a boyfriend named Alex and she eventually joins the creepy girl gang, and becomes a siren of sorts from the Greek myths.

This story never went as deep as I wanted it to go. I felt like Gemma was a very bland heroine, she lacked the drive that most characters have. I once read that if you want to create a good story, your character needs to want something. I can honestly not think of a thing that Gemma really really wanted besides that she wanted to be with Alex; but then she joins the creepy girl gang and loses that. So what was the point? Her sister, Harper (I remembered) was probably my favourite character, but the thing that bugged me was that she was a nineteen year old that acted as if she were twenty-eight years old. She was only a year older than Gemma, but she had her whole life put together and was perfectly level-headed. I would prefer she had been older, making her a more believable character. Alex had nothing about him that made me want Gemma to date him, in fact I thought they were oddly matched. The only other character I liked was Daniel, a random guy that Harper hates who ends up helping Gemma. I don't know how he's going to contribute in the later books, but I liked how he got under Harper's skin.

Kind of disappointing. I might read the other books to see how it concludes.

Don't Look Back
This is the first book that I didn't finish, and it wasn't because I didn't like it. I actually really enjoyed the characters and the setting and premise. BUT, I just recently "The Evolution of Mara Deyer"at the end of December and I felt as if I were reading the exact same book with a different author and cover. A girl wakes up with no memory of who she is, she finds out she was involved in some mysterious activity, one of her friends is either dead or missing, she returns to normal society only to realize she wasn't the same person she had been before the mysterious 'incident', but a handsome young boy attracts her attention, and he has the answers she needs to know who she is and what is going on. Literally that is the premise of both books. So I may pick this up later when I don't have another amnesic girl fresh on my mind.

Deep Secret
This is the second book I didn't finish. Diana Wynne Jones is usually an author that I thoroughly enjoy. She wrote The Chrestomanci Chronicles and Howl's Moving Castle, two books that have a quirky adorable quality about them. Deep Secret had that same quirk and wit. Her characters don't fit the Young Adult mold that we see in so many books. They are usually very unassuming and rather plain, something I really appreciate. Even the fantastical characters are rather plain at the same time. It's what makes her books so special and different.

Rupert Venables is a magid, a sort of wizard. The main Magid of Earth just recently passed away, and it is Rupert's duty to find a replacement. With the aid of the ghost of the recently passed Magid of Earth, Rupert searches for the potential new magid. But in another planet, the assassination of a corrupt Emperor calls Rupert to go there and find a new Emperor to rule the Empire. Trying to juggle two jobs at once is difficult to say the least. So to make life easier, Rupert uses magic to summon all of the potential candidates to a Sci-fi Convention to quicken the job. Like I said, quirky.

What stopped me from finishing this story was the fact that while I loved each of the characters, I didn't like it when they interacted, they tended to not like each other and never ever resolved that. It bugged me. The plot line moved at a slow pace that I was sort of irritated with and I just wanted a conclusion to something.

Having had time to let it simmer in my brain, I actually want to go back and finish it. Diana Wynne Jones has that affect on me. I may at first not love it, but after a while, it sticks to my brain and it manages to crawl to my heart. So if you hear about the quirky book about magids and centaurs in the near future, you can be safe to assume that Deep Secret managed to wriggle its way into my heart as well.

Well I hope that you enjoyed this, it took longer to write this than I had planned, but I can't stop once I start! Please feel free to share what you've thought of these books if you've read them! Thank you for stopping by!