OK, Melissa. I will blog.

Truth be told: Facebook is starting to bore me, I need a new personal outlet on the internet that I can have a little more fun with. My best friend Melissa Jane has had her vintage clothing blog (honeybeevintage.blogspot.com) for some time now, and after stalking her page and branching out to find other interesting/cute/informative blogs, I finally decided this would be an ideal place to babble on about stuff that interests me, and express my silly self. :P

Now for a topic to blog about.....ummmmm......ahem.....ok. I'll start with something obvious. Like, an explanation for this blog's title!

First: I'm a teensy bit unhealthily obsessed with Owls. The owl is my self-proclaimed "spirit animal". That sounds like some super cliche hippie shit, I know, but doesn't everyone have an animal that they just identify with, or feel drawn to? Or at the very least, have a great respect for? The Owl happens to be mine.

I'm very concerned with being loyal to oneself, meaning: thinking situations and feelings through before taking action, being able to separate emotions from reality, and especially finding your inner truth and being astute and determined about guiding your life by that truth. I feel like the characteristics of the owl coincide with those philosophies. I kind of give myself little owl-pep-talks sometimes:

"Don't be afraid of the dark (the unknown)."

"Turn your head around and appreciate life from a new angle"

"Never let anyone clip your wings, or put you in a cage. You are a free bird."

Second: I find my red hair to be an extremely significant part of my identity. I know that sounds very shallow to consider a part of your physical appearance as a great portion of who you are, but I've felt this way my whole life. My red hair and pale skin has always made me feel...different than others. Special. This could be just because of the way society treats any minority, but I always have, and always will prefer to believe it's a lot more mystical than that. To me, it's more than just a mutation of my melanocortin-1 gene. It's that I'm 99% sure I'm decended from mermaids...

Also, when becoming aquainted with new friends, I tend to have a naturally friendly, sweet, but somewhat guarded disposition. AT FIRST. As Melissa likes to divulge while we are chatting it up with folks when we go out, "I'm all bark, no bite. Kristina is no bark, ALL bite!" The person you meet when first getting to know me is just trying to stifle the mischievous, playful, and spontaneous girl who's always trying to burst out of me! I like to attribute this side of my personality to my red hair. My "fiery" side.... haha....

"Nobody who has known a redhead can say that redheads are tame. Even shy redheads have a burning spark of adventure inside them. Opinionated, hotheaded, logical, loyal, friendly, reserved, whatever the redheads' personality, you can bet they'll have SCADS of it!" - Review of The Redhead Encyclopedia

There once was a girl
with a Strawberry curl
Right in the middle of her forehead
And when she was good
she was very, very good
-but when she was bad she was horrid. - Unknown

"You'd find it easier to be bad than good if you had red hair," said Anne reproachfully. "People who haven't red hair don't know what trouble is."- Anne to Marilla in Anne of Green Gables

And my favorite redhead quote:

Out of the ash
I rise with my red hair
And eat men like air.
-Sylvia Plath

Third: I intend to avoid monotony and routine as much as possible in my life, because I don't want a life. I want an ADVENTURE! I want to expreience as much as I possibly can in the short time I have on this huge, beautiful earth, to create bonds with the myriad of diverse, amazing human beings I will encounter, to learn from every heartbreak or bout of laughter, from every friend, enemy, or stranger, from every mistake or wonderful decision... On the day I die I want to be able to say "I did it. Mission accomplished". Then smile and fly away as a Little Red Owl :)

Instead of pictures to enhance my Life vs. Adventure explanation, I have a song that helps keep me in alignment with what I want/believe in when all that life-bullshit is clouding my skies. Simple and sweet:

"Ten Things" by Paul Baribeau
name ten things you wanna do before you die and then go do them.

name ten places you really wanna be before you die and then go to them

name ten books you wanna read before you die and then go read them

name ten songs you wanna hear again before you die, get all of your friends together and scream them

because right now all you have is time time time

yeah, but someday that time will run out.

that's the only thing you can be absolutely certain about.

think of all the things that are wrong with your life and then fix them

think of all the things that you love about your life, be thankful you are blessed with them

think of all the things that hold you back and realize that you don't need them

think of all the mistakes you have made in your life, make sure that you never repeat them

because right now all you have is time time time

yeah, but someday that time will run out.

that's the only thing you can be absolutely certain about.

name ten thousand reasons why you never wanna die, go and tell someone who might've forgotten

try to list the endless reasons why it's good to be alive, and then just smile for awhile about them

soon the sun will rise and another day will come

soon enough the sun will set, another day will be gone

and right now all you have is time time time

yeah, but someday that time will run out. that's the only thing you can be absolutely certain about.

So that's an introductory chunk of me. I'll be writing about all kinds of things; interesting tidbits of information, the sunny side of life, creative craftiness, things that inspire me, vegan recipes, and whatever rolls through this crazy, feathered red head of mine!