 Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, and if you're anything like me then you always have high expectations with no idea what you actually want to do. Making it even more difficult for our partners this year, there is a pandemic and the usual dates are not entirely accessible. Luckily, I have had some time to think about some fun and covid friendly dates to do with your partner this year!
Paint and Sip Inspired by a date I have had pre-covid! All you need is a bottle (or two) of your favorite wine, two canvases, some paint, and YouTube. This is the perfect Valentine’s Day date for the couple who likes to have a fun and creative time with one another. You can find a painting tutorial on YouTube and make sure you have the paint colors prior to Valentine’s Day. Once you have all your materials, you will be ready for a fun date! Place your YouTube video on a laptop or TV and prep your painting station with paint, canvases, and of course WINE! Just follow the instructions of the video as you sip your wine and enjoy each other's company. From personal experience, a few glasses will definitely make for a better painting! Night at the Museum Anyone else love the art museum? Depending on your location the art museum has limited availability. You are able to reserve your time and free tickets on the website. This makes for an affordable date, and with limited time reservations, you can be safe and enjoy the art without the crowds! If you are not wanting to go out quite yet, good news, you can enjoy the art for free at the comfort of your own home! Museums have free virtual tours on their websites and you can even enjoy museums from all over the world. This is the perfect date for any art lovers. Mona Lisa in Cleveland or Starry Night in Dallas anyone? Movie Theater Rental One thing I have missed since the world has been shut down is going to the movies! There is just something different about movie theater popcorn, yes, it's stale, but it’s delicious. Movie theaters are now offering covid safe ways for you to go on movie dates, and it would be perfect for Valentine’s Day. You can rent a whole movie theater for up to 10 people for only $100. Even if you only go as a couple that would be $50/person, which is about the same price as a meal would cost anyways. Or, you could do a group date with some couple friends this Valentine’s Day and save some money! This is great for all movie lovers! Always, Audrey Marie
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    This could be the quarantine talking, but I think bangs are, might I say, in? I took an Instagram poll to see what the public (all 1.4k of them) thought about the hairstyle, and to my surprise 78% voted in favor of bangs, most of which were men. Does this mean bangs are making a comeback? Or, perhaps, people are bored in their house, and experimenting with scissors to the hair is always entertaining. Either way, I have a long history with bangs, and the relationship is a bit rocky to say the least.
How it Began I can say this with certainty that I was not the only child who played salon with Barbie's. However, I can say that I took my imaginary play too seriously one day as I decided to cut my own bangs. To be fair, I was four and knew absolutely everything, obviously. I knew so much that I ended up cutting my hair too close to the scalp and had given myself a bald spot. Classic. I did not learn my lesson, or perhaps I was a rebellious six year old, because once again I took scissors to my hair to give myself bangs. This time, right before picture day. Though I don’t know why I had such an infatuation with bangs at such a young age, it seemed like I got it out of my system because I would not be getting them again for another 15 years. Growing up I recall bangs as the ‘loser/nerdy’ hairstyle. The fear of being casted as Velma (mind you I had dark hair and glasses too), or be labeled as ‘coconut head' was very real as a kid, so that could explain my hiatus period. I was also told that I could never have bangs that are full because of my cowlicks. In short, I was scared away from bangs for 15 years, thought it was impossible to have, and I would be made fun of for it. How it was Going Fast Forward to December 2019, I was not happy and needed change. So, naturally, I dyed my hair DARK brown and got bangs. I found out after years of believing that I could never have pretty, full bangs, that I could in fact! Managing a hair routine, let alone bangs as a small child was not practical, but now that I was older, I was able to train my hair properly and to have the bangs I desired. They were pretty, and if I had a blemish on my forehead it covered it right up. If I was really lazy, or in a hurry, I even only did the bottom half of my makeup! So, there were definitely some perks to the bangs. I ended up having them voluntarily for 5 months (emphasis on voluntary). Then, quarantine and shut downs happened and no more bi weekly trims to the bangs, and hello Chewbacca. This is when I first saw the ugly side of bangs - the unkempt side. Bangs are like a never ending cycle. The upkeep alone could keep people away from the idea. Honestly, that is not the worst part of bangs. The worst part is when you finally decide to be done with bangs and attempt to grow them out. How it’s Ending My first attempt at growing out my bangs was summer 2020. Quarantine and lock downs forced me to do it, but in all honesty I was ready for a new style anyways. What I found out through that process, and am still experiencing, is that bangs do not grow back overnight. They also love to stay in an awkward phase for a hot minute. Growing out bangs requires lots of patience, you don’t even want to know the amount of times I was so close to cutting them back short to be rid of the awful look. This process is slow and anything but pretty. I am about 6 months into resisting cutting my bangs, and they have just now surpassed the ability to slightly be pulled back behind my ears. If I’m lucky, sometimes they will cooperate enough to be pulled back into a ponytail. The hassle of growing out bangs I believe is the reason why Zooey Deschanel has had the same look of bangs for so long. It's not a statement, it's just easier to cut than to grow. For now, I am dreaming of the day that my bangs will no longer be labeled as bangs, but just as hair. Don’t get me wrong, bangs are cute, high maintenance to manage, but cute. However, what is not cute is having to either wait years for hair to grow back to normal, or just stay with the same look of bangs for the rest of your life. You can decide your own fate, but me, I think I might have to take longer than 15 years to come back to this look. Always, Audrey Marie  Why is it that the New Year must always come with clichés? The amount of times I’ve seen the caption ‘New year, new me’ or ‘Looking forward to a fresh start’ has me wondering if I am just realistic or cynical. Now, hear me out, I am all about becoming the best version of myself, but why do I only have to hold myself accountable once a year on January 1st?
Resolutions Not to say I have never ‘set’ new year's resolutions for myself before, however, I feel like the concept is a bit, well, not for me. Personally, I try to be the best version of myself everyday, all year round. If I want to start working out more, I do it; if I want to set goals for myself, I do it; if I tell myself I need to balance work and social life more, I do it (well, still working on that one). My point is, consistently holding myself accountable throughout the year makes for an easy transition to the new year. I don’t experience the stress or self-loathing that new year goals can bring (along with their clichés). Resolutions, in my opinion, are just a giant volcano waiting to erupt. All that pressure that new year resolutions bring can create an unhealthy mental state on oneself. Setting goals for yourself is healthy, but if you aren’t practicing accountability and goal setting throughout the year, how are you realistically planning on holding true to the resolution? This brings me to my next problem with resolutions - failing. Along with the pressure in figuring out what your resolution will be, there is so much when it comes to upholding it as well. One tiny slip up on your new diet should not give you or anyone else reason to shame. Failing, or slipping up is natural, plain and simple, it happens. This doesn’t mean that you can’t be upset with messing up, what I am saying is that if you have a mishap, keep trying! Resolutions have this connotation attached to them that it is for the beginning of the year, I am saying it’s not. Just because it is February 22 and your new year's resolution of working out more has become obsolete, doesn’t mean you are a failure, or that you have to wait a whole other year to try again. Just keep it going, learn from your trouble areas and see how much longer you can go this time around. If you wait a whole year to try and workout again, for example, you’ll most likely end up with the same results. Instead of viewing the new year as the time to better yourself, look at everyday as an opportunity to do that. You can start something new, make goals, and hold yourself accountable all year round, not just at the beginning of the year. This will help decrease any stress or insecurities that time of year usually brings. Especially since you would be actively bettering yourself everyday already. Bad Mottos Along with resolutions, the new year also is full of cheesy sayings that very much erk me. Why do I have to have a ‘new me’ for the new year? I like myself, and I think I want to keep her around. I do appreciate the thought behind new years as a time to reflect, but again, instead of only doing so once a year, it should be something one does on the regular. While I’m on my tangent, I will also comment on how it is 100% okay if you did not entirely change yourself or do a big Eat Pray Love experience this year. Bottom line, the new year is an annual thing, it is inevitable, time sorta has that effect, but we do not need to feel bad about ourselves or compare to other peoples year in review. Every year does not require a whole new persona, you don’t have to be Megan on December 31 and Meg starting January 1! So can we stop with the ‘new year, new me’ mottos? If not, then I guess I’ll have to resort to ‘new year, same me’, which is just as bad of a motto I admit. The truth is, if you like new year's resolutions and they work for you - great! If you are like me and don’t care for them, then that is okay too. There is no right or wrong answer, this is just my own experience and perspective. I encourage everyone, even those who are religiously awaiting for the next year to set more resolutions, to hold yourself accountable all year round, be fair to yourself, and allow for mistakes. The only wrong answer is saying ‘new year, new me’, let’s just stop that trend, please! Always, Audrey Marie |
