Stories? Perhaps. Maybe not.

First off, like this blog on Facebook!I love writing for you so let me know if you like this or not. :)

The light breeze in the hot summer afternoon was cooling under the old willow. The long stems of leaves running down around Helena provided a sense of security as she clutched the old photos of those she loved. The edges were burnt and the gloss contained a film of dirt and ash. She could smell the smoke drifting in the almost absent air.

She felt another presence nearby but couldn't place her finger on what it was. She looks up. Terrified, she stays quiet as to not disturb the figure standing behind the curtain of green. She's petrified and cannot move. The sweat gathers on her forehead while she pulls the pictures close to her heart, hoping to keep them safe from the figure. 

He moves. A bright shine bounces off the object in his hand and glints in Helena's eyes. She closes them and focuses her attention on hearing the footsteps of the man. He treads lightly so as not to be seen with the bloody stains he has on his shirt and hands. The crunchiness of the dead grass sounds as he finds his way toward a nearby fence. 

He's closer to her now. Helena's eyes remain shut and she holds her breath as he passes by. 

The man never notices her, though she felt his eyes pass over her more than once in the time she had been sitting under the old tree. Why was he there now? What brought him to her safe place? She had run as fast as she could from the fire and there was no way he could have seen her. His footsteps are gone, but the rapid beating of her heart hasn't slowed. She opens her eyes and exhales a sigh of relief as the sound of the footsteps had disappeared. 

She wishes she was brave enough to open her eyes sooner and be able to see the man. She wouldn't be able to describe him anymore than that shadowy dark figure who held the sickle in his hand in blood stained clothes. She unfolded her legs and leaned against the tree. Where would she go now? Who could she turn to? She's a mile away from the nearest town and no one knew who she was. 

She brought the pictures away from her chest and looked down at the polaroids that were all she had of her past. The only boy who truly loved her, her best friend in overalls and shaggy black hair who sat beside her when her mother died all those years ago. His green eyes were the jewels of her childhood and the only distinguishing features she could remember about him before she was taken from him. 

In another, a quarter of the square had been missing. The top right of her mothers hairdo was singed away and the smile she had seen ever so often was etched on the grain. It was odd to see herself so young, as she marveled at how tightly her mother held her on her lap. That old dress had been saved for her and waited for Helena in a trunk beneath the barn, hopefully untouched by the fire. 

The last of the photographs was of her darling sister who she knew was safe since her grandparents had taken her before the darkness came over their lives. Helena would have never been able to prepare herself for what her life, what little of a life there was, would have been like since the death of her mother. Helena and her sister had only known each other for a short time before she was taken as an infant. The father couldn't stand the sight of her little sister, knowing that she was the cause of the death of his wife. It didn't help anymore that Helena was the spitting image of their darling mother, Francesca. 

No one knew the torment she would experience following the birth of Samantha. Her mother was known for her loving nature and she had the essence of one of those women you come across who has such a welcoming smile and lights up any room. Her loveliness surpassed any amount of ugliness in the world. The father didn't deserve her and had stolen her from his brother. She had never known the story behind her planned marriage, she didn't need to know, and would never known. 

Helena had fallen asleep under the willow and had woken up in the dead of night surrounded by darkness. She had grown accustomed to not having any dreams at this point and it never bothered her that her imagination had been locked away and kept inside since that first dreadful night that she had been abused. Her only focus now was to find a way to town and find someone who could help her. She fastened the photos in her bag and examined the contents one by one. A small bread roll, an apple, a small cooking knife, the letter she got from her best friend Jeremy, the 134 dollars she had been saving up since she was 6, a small whistle, a flashlight, and now her treasured photos. She contemplated the options that remained for her and what she needed to do from now on. She was alone now and her first priority was to find the only person besides her mother who loved her. Jeremy should be close by; according to the address on her letter. She tucked her unwanted memories and the chilling past into her bag, slung it over her shoulder, and walked out from the safety of the willow and into the night...

Bouldering Accident and Just Desserts

First off, like this blog on Facebook! I love writing for you so let me know if you like this or not. :)

     So 2 weeks ago I went off-campus and I went bouldering. It was actually really sick, a lot of fun, and kind of dangerous. I fell a good 20 ft, plummeting to the ground but I'm okay, I obviously survived. I have no broken bones and I'll try to explain exactly everything that happened... Well, at least all the non-boring stuff anyway. Haha. It was a pretty nice Saturday morning and I was on my way across campus to meet up with some people who were going bouldering that day. For those of you who don't know... Bouldering is basically where you tackle the task of rock climbing giant rock formations, except you don't use any rope. You basically head out into the woods with a pair of climbing shoes and hopefully a safe and portable mattress pad to land on. I happened to not be using the the afore mentioned, mattress pad. I have to say I think I was pretty good at it. The problem was that I went to climb this rock formation that I had seen others climb. I reached the top of the structure and was trying to figure out a way to pull myself up without falling backward towards the earth. I had already reached the top and the placement where I was originally holding onto with my feet and my hands: right hand, top right perfectly placed rock that I had a great grip on, the right shoe on a ledge, the left on another and my left hand on another nicely placed rock. I reach up with my left hand to grab hold onto another ledge, and as I released the rock, the tiny ledge under my right hand gave way and I fell. I landed in some bushes and I just sort of laid there for a moment, absorbing what had just happened. I fell on my side and nothing hurt immensely. I even landed on the rocks, just my luck.

     But I was able to get up with a little help and I only had minor lacerations and slight bruising but I had a round of applause for taking it and not making a fuss about it. I consciously made the decision to climb without any safety gear, without a matt, and without anyone to spot me. I didn't make a big deal when I fell and I didn't want anyone else to either. I took it and I expected no apologies because it was all my own doing. So... With that, I'm kind of glad I fell. It would have been cool not to but I had something interesting to talk about when I went to All Tied Up. haha.

     All Tied Up was pretty much a blind desserts (sundays that were to die for <3) date where the men in the hall would put their ties in a bucket and then all the girls would just grab a tie and be paired up with whosever ties they got. I chose a nice satin, deep purple tie because I honest-to-God thought, "This reminds me of my black best friend." haha. As you can see above, I was paired with an RA named Josh. His hall theme.... was Batman. It was freakin' awesome being able to geek out with someone I had JUST met. We're both musicians and he's a Junior. He's a pretty sick guy and I'm glad I was able to connect with him. :) To the left, you see some lovelies who we were also with.
 Everyone had a great time at the Cour de'Lane Resort. :) I'm glad I was able to share this with you! 
Until next time, Love, -Julsie <3

College Guys and Girls

First off, like this blog on Facebook! I love writing for you so let me know if you like this or not. :)

There is a DRASTIC difference between the two. I've always believed in a saying about the two,

"Boys will simply want things to happen for them, but men will always make it happen."

and one of my all-time favorite,

"Men with good intentions make promises. Men with good character, keep them." 

I have yet to meet a quality man who can follow through with the above. I know, I'm young but honestly, I can't wait until that day comes. What do I know about "men" right? Well I'll answer that in a few weeks. I'll definitely come back to that.

College Guys

So there's this thing called the "Fungeon" and it's located under the wing I currently reside in at my hall. It's basically the basement with about.. oh say 15 guys or so. They're the guys who throw parties but they're also pretty awesome. A few of my friends live down there and they're a handful. haha. I've made more guy friends than I did girl friends. A few tips to guys AND to girls about ways to befriend the opposite sex.

Girls

• Look at the area and sit next to a guy! Sometimes they're busy of course, but you can tell if they are or not about 85% of the time. Just be friendly and go for it!

• Bake/cook food! As sexist as it sounds, the community kitchen is a great place to be. The smell of freshly made goods are always inviting. Just be sure to make more than one serving. 

• Hang out in common areas and be where people can see you and be open to talking to others. 

• Ask the other person and simply listen to their interests, and see if you have things in common. Also, if you're in a dorm, leave your door open. It seems more inviting and people are curious to see what's behind it. 

• Don't make hints to guys. They won't pick up on it. Just try to be casual about what you want to talk about. It's a kind and sensitive way to talk to people and make sure you can talk about something you both can relate to. 

     Examples of topic questions:

          Where are you from? What's your hometown like? Have any hobbies? Favorite subject? Music? Favorite food? These are all surface level questions that don't necessarily dig deep so as to not make the person feel uncomfortable, but it starts off a great conversation.

Guys

        It's harder to give you specific guidelines since I'm not a guy, but I'll tell you what I see happen a lot and what the input from my friends say. 

• There are certain situations where a girl is okay to talk to. Think of this, if you see them out in public and they might be working on something, just ask what it is and see if you can help. If they're in public, it's more likely that they are hoping to talk to people instead of being in the library or their room. 

• If she's walking by as though she's on the way to class, just say hi and smile. That's it. They don't need to know you at that point, they're going to be late for class. But she's more likely to recognize you later if you two meet again. The little things matter. Especially if she makes first contact, capitalize on that. 

• Say she's sitting somewhere alone, make a good impression. The best way to give a first impression is to smile, or give a nice compliment. Girls love compliments FYI.

• If you're both in class, sit next to her! Be friendly, definitely be helpful, and if she needs a partner... Offer your awesome skills of whatever subject you're in. Haha.

• NEVER APPROACH IF NUMBERS ARE GREATER THAN 3. Proceed at your own risk. 

Well that's the  best I can do for now. Don't forget to email me HERE. :) Thanks! 

Love,

-Julsie <3



*With help from Nicholas Gosselin, Hope Barnes, and Nicholas Lee. :3