I had most of this blog post written and my internet decided to crash soooo... I lost it all. I really need to start writing these things in Word first.  

Anyway, the gist of the post was how I was having a rough week. Honestly, the internet crapping out and deleting my blog post really wasn't surprising.

As far as my bad week goes, I have not been getting sleep lately. No matter how early I go to bed I've lain awake every night until around 2 A,M. So, my brain's a little fried and I'm having a lack of sleep induced pity party.  It'll probably clear up by next week.

I hope.

Because of said pity party, I decided that I needed retail therapy.  I probably shouldn't have. With the holidays coming up faster than I'd like to think, I should probably hoard my money... but... I needed it. (Needed, wanted. Tomato, tomahto) I needed some retail induced happiness. And what, friends, is happier than romance novels? Not much,  So, of course, I ended up at Barnes and Noble.
  

​I got this adorable journal to keep as a "positivity journal."  At least I'm being proactive about my pity party state of mind ;)

​I love the gold foil on the letters and the bumble bee. It's even cuter inside. The pages are all colorful and it says things like "smile" and "be happy." I wanted something to write down the things in life that make me happy each day. Even if it's as mundane as "my bendy straw is lime green, today." (What? You don't drink your iced coffee out of florescent colored bendy straws? Just me? Alright.) It's easy to get bogged down with negative thinking and self-doubt but I'm hoping that writing down positivity will counteract any negative thoughts and feelings I have. Because, let me tell you, being a writer causes so much self-doubt and I do not want to give in to that. Besides, any excuse to buy a cute notebook, am I right?

A trip to B&N wouldn't be complete without a stopping by romanceland. I only got two books but believe me I wanted more.

That's my little haul for the day. I cannot wait to dive in to those books!!!
​See you next week, friends :)

It's pretty much a consensus that fall is a fantastic time of year. The weather is chilly but not cold, the leaves are changing into rich, beautiful colors, and Hocus Pocus is on at least once a week.  But what isn't always agreed on is what takes home the best of the best prize.  Everyone likes different things and everyone seems to stick to those guns hard core.  If you don't believe me then try telling a pumpkin spice girl that apple cider is better.

So I thought it would be fun to make a list of fall favorites and circle my personal favorites.  

1. Pumpkin Spice or Apple Cider
Answer: Apple Cider
It seems like as soon as September hits, pumpkin spice everything is everywhere. And I won't lie, I order a pumpkin spice latte once or twice during the season but if I had to pick one over the other, I'm definitely more of an apple cider girl.

2. Corn Maze or Haunted house
Answer: Corn Maze
I do a corn maze just about every year.  It doesn't feel like fall until I've gone to a corn maze.  Also, I don't like haunted houses.  I don't like paying people to scare me :)

3. Horror Movie or Kids Movie
Answer: Kids Movie
See above about not enjoying being scared.  And there are so many fun kids movies for Halloween.  The Great Pumpkin, Wallace and Gromit, and so many more that I absolutely love.

4. Caramel Apple or Bucket of Candy
Answer: Bucket of Candy
Ummm... a bucket filled with Halloween candy? Yes please! Pass me a Kit Kat.

5. Cutesy Costume or Scary Costume
Answer: Cutesy Costume
I'm not one for scary. I'll wear my little pumpkin, Belle from Beauty and the Beast, or cute witch costume any day.

6. Sweater or Jacket
Answer: Sweater
So. Cozy!

7. Apple Pie or Pumpkin Pie
Answer: Apple Pie
You'd think because I answered apple cider over pumpkin spice that I'd go for the apple pie.  But no.  I'm pumpkin pie all the way, baby!  My mom and I bake a huge batch from scratch every year.  I'm talking cutting open real pumpkins and everything.  It's been my favorite since I was a little kid.

So there you go. Those are my favorites, what are yours?

I know, I know, a dumb show based off of a dumb slasher movie franchise.  Bite your tongue, those movies are amazing.  

Scream (the movie) scared the bejeezus out of me when I was a kid.  I went over a friend's house and her parents let us watch it (what were they thinking? I was 7 or 8 years old. My mom was livid when she found out.)  Some kids are afraid of monsters under their bed.  Me? I was afraid of the Scream dude in my closet. Why some guy in a Halloween costume would want to hang out in my messy ass closet, I don't know, but to a kid it made sense.

Movie Spoiler Alert (It's been 20 years, I think the statute of limitations is up on spoilers)

Then when I was older, about 16 probably, I decided to watch it again and holy crap it's hilarious.  Such a funny movie.  And Mathew Lillard will always be Shaggy from Scooby Doo to me so he was automatically a lot less scary.  Just that bit at the end where Sidney tells him she called the cops and he responds with "my mom and dad are gonna be so mad at me."  God, I love it!  And so when I found out MTV was going to make a TV show out of it I figured I'd watch the first episode.  

My expectations were not high.  Actually, I watched the first 10 minutes or so of it and thought, this is dumb, I'm wasting my time, and turned it off.  Then a few weeks later my sister (also a fan of the movies) wanted to watch it.  So after a few minutes of "please, Jackie, please," I gave in and sat down with my popcorn and low expectations. And I am so glad I did because I freaking love it.  We ended up binge watching whatever was out at the time (a respectable 5 or 6 episodes, I think.)  

I know it didn't get much critical acclaim (it's a teen slasher show on MTV.  Who was really expecting Oscar award winning stuff?)  It's a little cheesy, and some of the acting is terrible (although not as bad as I expected it to be. Score another point for low expectations.)  But it's suspenseful and funny and I catch definite nods to the movies here and there. I love that it references horror movies and in the first episode even asks the question "how could you make a horror movie into a TV show?"

I think that if you enjoyed the movies, you'll like the show. Or if you just plain like cheesy slasher movies than you might like this cheesy slasher show.  I definitely love it. (No shame, Jackie.  Own it!)

There still hasn't been any word on if it's renewed for a third season but there is a Halloween special next week, October 18th, so at least we'll get some form of closure if it's cancelled.  Seriously MTV tell us! 

​Also because of this show, I'm absolutely obsessed with this song: Dark in my Imagination by Of Verona