#emmyreckless

I find enjoyment in capturing slices of life—little fragments of a moving picture. // The pages below hold my collections — some of my travels, everyday moments, and also some college assignments. // The posts to the right are a combination of photos, articles and things I care about.

[salon]

“It’s not like I’m going to do these things forever. I mean, I’m in college and everyone says it’s the time to let go. If I don’t do all these things now, when will I? Now’s the time to party hard with friends, stay up late, smoke and drink, and just enjoy myself. But it’s not like something I do all the time so it’s really not like a big deal. I mean, I’m sure I won’t be smoking when I’m done with college.” —Blake, eighteen-year-old male

Reversing a decades-long trend, young people are smoking more than anyone else in America. Here’s why

[emilynacey]

Grace Ciao: Fashion Designer

I have been drawing a lot lately, sketching fashion designs and new outfits. I was binge watching Project Runway before I got my Kindle, so I think that combined with my obsession with polyvore is pushing me towards drawing my own designs lately.

I am obsessed with the flower designs that Grace Ciao has been putting together. She uses all sorts of unconventional mediums to create shapes and the result is awesome.

Check it out:

These are some seriously sweet designs!

Orchids, one of my favorite flowers.

Does that come in my size??

I can't even pick a favorite because I am so blown away! She also works with other mediums like candy wrappers and such. Check her out on Instagram here and also check out her new website here!

Stay true <3 Emmy

[nostradickmus]

Wesley Lowery recalling a scene in his mind when the police were yelling at photographers to back up because they didn’t want photographers documenting anything. This literally made me cry people in Ferguson are terrified for their lives. Scared of the people who are suppose to protect them.

[wired]

Presenting our September cover: Edward Snowden, photographed by Platon. Read our exclusive profile of Snowden here.

[nprfreshair]

RIP Robin Williams 1951 - 2014 

[emilynacey]

Today.

Today was...

Peaceful. Today was a day for sitting still and listening to Flume by Bon Iver. Actually, the whole album For Emma, Forever Ago is perfect for today.

Thoughtful. Today was a day full of thoughts. Today, I thought a lot about the past, a handful about the present and a little about the future.

Nostalgic. Today I felt extremely nostalgic. Mostly, it's because I interacted with people that were in my life during my best times.

To a time when I lived with this girl, my best friend.

To a time where two great friends showed me, a kid whose parents' divorce altered her thoughts on relationships, that committing to another is beautiful.

To the incredible journey I took with the incredible people I met.

At peace. Today I felt at peace. The weather soaked my skin and sprouted freckles on my face, and I felt at peace.

[emilynacey]

Today's song:

Flume -- Bon Iver

[theonlymagicleftisart]

This French Short Film “Oppressed Majority” by Éléonore Pourriat Shows Men What It’s Really Like To Be A Woman In A Sexist Society by Reversing Their Roles In An Alternate Reality.

[yyonet]

"These are images from the catalog for Debenhams, a British department store. Don’t you wish every store expanded their ideas of beauty like they have?"  (Via Upworthy.com) This is absolutely beautiful!

[emilynacey]

Bigotry disguised as religious freedom is still bigotry.

Seen on a sign in relation to the Hobby Lobby ruling. 

[beyoncevoters-blog]

[emilynacey]

[johnnylists]

1. Words-to-Use.com — A different kind of thesaurus.

2. OneLook.com — One quick dictionary search tool.

3. Vocabulary.com — The quickest, most intelligent way to improve your vocabulary.

4. ZenPen.io — A minimalist writing zone where you can block out all distractions.

5. 750words.com

[emilynacey]

Most women are fertile for about 35 years. That means a woman who desires two children will spend three decades of her life trying to prevent an unintended pregnancy.

An excerpt from "Would you Like to Become Pregnant in the Next Year?" by Julie F. Kay and Michele Stranger Hunter for Slate

[emilynacey]

Ketchikan, AK

[emilynacey]

In 1979, when the minimum wage was $2.90, a hard-working student with a minimum-wage job could earn enough in one day (8.44 hours) to pay for one academic credit hour. If a standard course load for one semester consisted of maybe 12 credit hours, the semester's tuition could be covered by just over two weeks of full-time minimum wage work—or a month of part-time work. A summer spent scooping ice cream or flipping burgers could pay for an MSU education. The cost of an MSU credit hour has multiplied since 1979. So has the federal minimum wage. But today, it takes 60 hours of minimum-wage work to pay off a single credit hour, which was priced at $428.75 for the fall semester.

"The Myth of Working Your Way Through College" by Svati Kirsten Narula for The Atlantic

[emilynacey]

The Fault in Our Stars

I've just finished reading The Fault in our Stars by John Green for the second time. It was even better than the first time I read it. 

I read a lot of books of all sorts of varieties, including young adult fiction. I'm not going to defend why I enjoy the young adult category, but I will say that I think books like TFIOS are great at giving a young perspective on unwavering love. 

This story begins with the protagonist, 16-year-old Hazel Grace Lancaster, in her third year batting Stage VI thyroid cancer that metastasized to her lungs. Augustus Waters, a 17-year-old boy who lost his leg to osteosarcoma, meets Hazel at a Cancer Support Group for children and teens.

The main reason I think about this book so much is due to the main characters having cancer. I consider myself--with my plain and rather boring life--to be introspective; questioning life and its many factors. But to be young and have something as definitive as cancer, it's something I can't imagine. For me, this story contains characters with this serious illness and gives them something young and juvenile: pure love. 

Green heightens the dynamic between the teenagers, creating an engaging tale of two individuals brought together through pain, united through circumstance and joined through love.**

The second reason I love this book so much is because of the way it is written. While these teenagers engage in juvenile, young love, they are anything but immature. Green writes beautiful phrases for these characters:

"My thoughts are stars I cannot fathom into constellations."

“As he read, I feel in love the way you fall asleep: slow, and then all at once.”

The Fault in Our Stars was released as a major motion picture on June 6th, starring Shailene Woodley as Hazel Lancaster and Ansel Elgort as Augustus Waters. 

**This excerpt was taken from an article I wrote for Voices of Central Pennsylvania.