I did it!

   I'm going to college!

   Friday was a very happy day for me. I was so anxious, I woke up at 6 a.m. to see if the results were out (they publish a list on internet) and continued checking every half hour. And yes, I made it!

    And made it very well. My course, which has not an exact equivalent in the english speaking countries - it studies the language (here, Portuguese), basically, its roots and grammar and literature, and a second language (you choose between english, spanish, french, german, italian, greek, latin and some colleges offer also chinese, japanese and arabic) and its literature.

    So, I was in ninth place in my course! Ninth! I am so proud!

    My course is not very valued here, despite its interesting proposal, because mainly what you can do with its diploma is teaching. And no one wants to be a teacher anymore, except crazy people like me. I want to teach at the university, because the salary is very good, but I would also like to teach younger people and make them like reading (reading is seen here as an EXTREMELY boring activity and people simply don't do that. Ever. They just spend their lives without reading a single book. That's sad). Maybe even do some research on reasons why children feel so discouraged to read here and how to reverse this picture.

   Well, let's start by the beginning now. I already found a place to live, a nice little place, on a very safe building close enough to downtown so I can walk there when needed and far enough so noise doesn't disturb me. There are little food shops close and a bus that goes straight to the campus. I can't wait to slowly and cheaply go decorating it, filling it with my personality. It will be a nice challenge.

   Oh, and when I arrived home I had a little surprise waiting. My Vintage Hairstyles book was waiting for me! I'll do a review as soon as I finish it, but I can tell it is simply marvelous! I am astonished with the simplicity Lauren puts into the steps. She's a genius.

    I am very pleased with my life now, indeed I am.

Camila's Culinary Adventures

   So, I never learned how to cook. My mother did try to teach me, but I'm not a good learner from watching, I learn better doing, and she never let me just take over the kitchen. So over the years all I learned how to cook was instant noodles (which I looooove, but you can't live from it).

   These last days I'm trying to cook some stuff. If I get to go to college this year (results come out tomorrow!) I'll have to cook for myself and I'm looking forward to this as great opportunity for me to try doing this my way.

   I've been mostly cooking pasta, because I love it and it's easy. Pretty good results until now. First time I tried to do white sauce I burned everything so I had to throw it away, but second attempt was very successful and very delicious. My seedless and skinless tomato sauce didn't cook much, but was delicious as well. And just yesterday I did some alioli with Jonas and it was very good too. I've been lucky so far.

   But the best thing we did was an omelette. At first things didn't go very well - I'm very clumsy and always find a way to more explode the eggs better than break them. Then it started to go right. We chopped ham in very small pieces and put it in the egg, mixed everything and threw it in the frying pan. Then I remembered there were some potato leftover from dinner (the omelette was a 2 a.m. snack. Hey, it's my vacation) so I chopped it very small as well and put it evenly on top and let it cook. When it was almost done we flipped it over (with the help of a plate. We're not so ninja), waited a bit and put it in the plate.

   Here's our masterpiece:

   Seems pretty yummy, huh? And it was. Just perfect.

   Other nice culinary good I discovered the other day was the cutest koala shaped biscuits filled with chocolate. Jonas and I went to this japanese store here where they sell sushi and other things from Japan and he took them for me to try.

   They are made in Thailand and are SO delicious! You just can't stop eating it. It's a pity it comes so few in the package. It comes about 10. 10 is not enough for my candy satisfaction!

   Aren't they the cutest thing?

   In time, I hope I'll be cooking more elaborate stuff. Who knows one day I am good enough to post some recipes here? That should be interesting.

Anxious to start vintage beauty experience... and maybe college too

   I'm done with my exams! No more! And hopefully, never again! Results for the college I want come out next friday, and I'm really looking forward to it. In the meantime I've been looking for places to live if I get accepted and waiting for my fabulous vintage beauty books to arrive from the US.


   It was really REALLY expensive because the dollar has been going up lately and the shipping was US$50. But I longly reflected on it and got to the conclusion it's worth my money. I'm sure I will use these bokks all the time and if I were to buy something like those here it would be even more expensive.

   I ordered Vintage Hairstyling: Retro Styles with Step-by-step Techniques by Lauren Rennells which has amazing reviews everywhere and seems to be very simple and instructive. People say the chapter on curling techniques is awesome and I really do need some help with my pincurling (it always gets kind of irregular). They also say it is very complete on the haisrtyles and little details like hair acessories and even nail beauty (even though I don't like painting my nails, I can see how this information is very useful for most women).

The author has also a vintage make-up guide which I will totally buy if the hairstyling one is good. She writes the lovelly Bobby Pin Blog that has more tips on hair and other stuff too. She looks like a very nice person.

   I also ordered two truly vintage books: Beauty, Glamour & Personality - A Complete 1940s Guide to Vintage Makeup, Hairstyling and Elegance; and Westmore Beauty Book - A Complete 1950s Guide to Vintage Makeup, Hairstyling and Beauty Techniques, both by the Westmore brothers (they did the makeup in many movies of the time and were very innovative). It's going to take so much time for them to arrive! At least February 15. The books are very complete and include even lifestyle and etiquette instructions, everything widely illustrated. They look like treasures to me.

   I'm really looking forward to their arrival. Can't wait to try all the beautiful styles!

Easy DIY Hairstyles

   I love these pictures that show step-by-step how to do some hairstyles, so through time I've collected a few of them and I want to share with you. I don't think they are the most flattering hairstyles around (vintage looks are prettier), but they are more to add a nice touch in you common everyday look.

 

   Hope it's useful to everyone! I still have to try most of it... But I'm pretty sure it'll work. Have fun!

What I Don't Like About New Year

   I haven't been very enthusiastic about the whole New Year thing for a few years now.

   To most people, it means a lot. It's like a start. A new chance to do what you weren't able to the last year. You set new goals, and it all seems so hopeful. You will make it. It's a new year, a new chance to make it right.

   Well, I just can't see that. When I was a bit younger, it hit me that it was just, you know... the passing of another day. Just like any other day in my life. Any other ordinary day.

   And all those things you hope to accomplish, the new year won't make them magically happen. It's all up to you. And you don't have to wait until the new year comes. You start the changes anytime you want. At the middle of August. Next week. When you have some time. This very moment.

   I never let the illusion of the new year get me anymore. Maybe I'm just being too rational - and a bore - but I think that sometimes the wait makes it too late. Too me, the new year - not the time in it, but the passing of the old to the new - will bring a few risks on the last number when I write the date in my diary, until I get used to it.

   So, well, I don't think anyone should change your new year's resolutions. But if you decide to change them, or add some, don't wait for 2013. Everyone should re-evaluate their lives every once in a while. More frequently that just in the end of each year.

   Good luck with your goals.

Dating a Nerd: Games

 
   Hello! In my opinion, nerds are the best guys. Not geeks, nerds. Those shy, a bit dorky guys. They are smart and more mature and  give more importance to personality than looks. And also, there aren't a bunch of stupid girls around them trying to get their attention all the time.

   But there's a thing about dating nerds that might annoy some women: games. They love it. They play it all the time. They talk about it. A lot.

   So what do you do? Desperately try to get him out of the computer? That is what most women do.

   But I think it's more effective, and also bonding, and surprising, if you try to understand that and go play. Actually, there is a lot of awesome games, specially if you like fantastic stuff (like Lord of the Rings) or being challenged.

   Thing is, you might just have a lot of fun. I do. Specially playing World of Warcraft, which became a favorite. I'm a proud Draenei (a kind of alien satyr) Frost Mage and Jonas, I and a friend of ours have a lot of  fun playing hours and hours of it, slaying dragons and giants and riding our gryphons and meeting nice people.

Even though you'll look scary, he'll still love you :P

    I've even made a friend in Philippines the other day. She and her boyfriend play too. We asked for her help in a raid and we started chatting and she was so nice!

    Your boyfriend will really appreciate your efforts. And be totally proud of his gamer girlfriend if you enjoy the thing. And if you don't, well, he will like very much the fact that you've tried instead of just assuming it is childish and stupid and complain about it all the time.

I could be your Zelda if you will be my Link

   And then probably he will understand your things better. Like that day when Jonas was watching me put on my makeup and said: "Well, this is actually kind of difficult. It's almost an art. I am even kind of afraid of kissing you now and messing it up". So you see? It's better when you try to understand the interest of each other for something, than just complain about it and let this part of the other be a complete stranger to you. That is very sad.

   So be his thing gaming, or astrophysics, or how cars work, or martial arts, or whatever, try to show interest and understand the beauty he sees in it. And he will also be more open to your clothes and makeup, or musicals of the 50s, or knitting, or passion for Jane Austen books. And you'll live happily ever after!

Charmanders are red, Squirtles are blue,

If you were a pokemon, I'd choose you.

   

(You just don't know how hard it is to find cute photographs of nerd couples)