why i don't own a television

My name is Katie, and I haven't owned a television in three years. And no, it's not a form of protest, I'm not doing it to make a statement, and I don't think television is the devil incarnate. I think I just..forgot to own one. Mostly, I'm just too busy for television.

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So I've never seen a single episode of...

the bachelor, the bachelorette, the bachelor pad,

howmanybachelorshowscantherebe?, grey's anatomy, 

modern family, arrested development, parks and rec, 

community, 30 rock, the big bang theory

{insert modern popular show of choice}

...do I feel like I'm missing out?

mehhhhhh.

Don't get me wrong, I have many treasured memories of childhood TV shows and movies that I still love to quote with my friends and family.

When I do watch TV, I prefer the classics:

boy meets world, saved by the bell, gilligan's island, 

happy days, sabrina the teenage witch, full house, etc.

But as for actually owning a TV...

I honestly never ever miss it.

except for during the olympics but there are ways around that.

...what about you?

[via]

the minnow would be lost, the minnow would be lost,

katilda

the dangers of curbs & egg rolls

before i even start this post,

my true and honest feelings toward my body this week:

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...right.

remember how i'm training for a marathon?

well things were going just dand-a-landy, they were indeed...

but then...

is it an epic story?

nay.

i fell off a curb.

while walking.

and rolled my ankle in a big way.

and then,

i totally scratched the inside of my throat last night.
on an egg roll.
i've never been so keenly aware of peristalsis.

the ol' bod can't catch a break this week, eh?

but don't worry,
i made it all better with an asian manicure indulgence yesterday:

and how can i be melancholy with sparkles on my fingers?

hobblity hobble (sparkle) hobbleson,

katilda

freelancing for Transform You AZ.

natural light vs. electricity

in my office, we never turn on the lights.

you see, we have this perfectly lovely window. it's an ingenious invention, if you haven't heard of one. it's like a magical portal to free, healthy lighting.

consulting a map by my hostel window in portland

when people flip the dreaded light switch, causing me to be bathed in a sea of yellow haze and deathly hallows, it's like a wicked witch of the west scene up in here.

you know, the shrieking and melting. not the parts about being green. and nobody takes my broom. and i actually don't have a flying monkey to my name. but maybe i should get one?

[via]

the point is, i detest electric lighting. i put off using it as long as possible every day, i.e. it must be pitch black before i even consider it. there are few things i loathe more than when i'm reading a book in a perfectly sunlit room and someone walks in and flips on the dreaded yellow lights.

whyyyyyy?!

*cue the melting*

*and jaundice*

do you have feelings on this? or am i the only one who will list light bulbs as a pet peeve?

sorry, thomas edison. it's nothing personal. vitamin D for the win. 

would YOU live in a tiny house?

this appeared in my facebook feed the other day:

How I Did It: Shrunk My Life to 128 Square Feet

you guys, i shouldn't be allowed to read such things.

because now i want to live in a tiny house.

it's like this little simple-yearning hippie inside me started frolicking around and writing poetry about the oppression of the city and piles of junk i don't even use, and that inner hippie said, "Yes! Yes! Tiny House! Let's order Tiny House T-shirts! In organic cotton!" she is quite vocal, that inner hippie.

and now you have to read the article!

would YOU live in a tiny house?

if i didn't have such a hefty book collection and copious amounts of thrifted threads this might be more feasible for me.

...maybe i could get a two-story tiny house to fit my library?

my new writing website!

pssst. look over in my sidebar. 

there's something new.

hire my writing?

yes, it's true...

i made a goal at work this quarter:

make myself a professional writing website

so after a few dozen hours,

microsoft painting because i don't know photoshop,

and tedious blogger HTML battling...

viola!

katie writes is born!

meet my new baby:

she weighs a healthy 8lbs, 6oz

has a naturally nice temperament

and i think she has her mother's eyes

go check it out!

see a list of some of my published work.

send me a message in my fancy contact form.

read my first writing-themed blog post on there.

and let me know what you think!

i'm a right proud mama.

right proud!

pretending to be a web designer,

katilda

where i'm dying to go before i die: europe edition

if you follow my pinterest

or read yesterday's rambling post,

then you're well aware that mr. travel bug has bitten.

and he has bitten something fierce!

i'm definitely on a Europe kick.

here's where i'm currently dying to go before i die:

italy

Source: flickr.com via Katie Elizabeth on Pinterest

ireland

Source: google.com via Katie Elizabeth on Pinterest

finland

to sleep in a glass igloo under the northern lights

Source: kakslauttanen.fi via Katie Elizabeth on Pinterest

england

Source: google.com via Katie Elizabeth on Pinterest

holland

Source: ikoupon.com via Katie Elizabeth on Pinterest

the netherlands

Source: google.com via Katie Elizabeth on Pinterest

russia

Source: sunsurfer.tumblr.com via Katie Elizabeth on Pinterest

did i miss anywhere you highly recommend?

i just suddenly have this distinct and insatiable feeling that there is an entire world happening and i am somehow missing it whilst being tucked in one little corner.

born to run,

katilda

18 thrilling details about my life

in the spirit of being a real human being,

here are 18 real-human-being details of my life this week:

1. work is busy

2. i want to live in europe for about a year or something

3. i started a travel board on pinterest

4. i found a rubber snake in the produce section

5. i think the deli man put it there

6. he had the crazy eyes

7. the deli man, not the snake

8. admittedly, they both had the crazy eyes

9. i think i need to eat more iron? how do you tell?

10. i'm in a running funk but training must go on

11. i bought three little pumpkins

12. i am ready to welcome autumn with open arms

13. i finally bought real groceries yesterday

14. it'd been a looong time

15. i ate chocolate cake for first dinner yesterday

16. i ate second dinner later, don't worry

17. i honestly don't even like chocolate cake very much

18. the following picture speaks to me:

Source: busybeelauren.tumblr.com via Katie Elizabeth on Pinterest

tell me some things about your life, maybe?

there's a snake in my boots,
katilda

100 followers & a discount code

happy 100 followers of my blog day to me!

good job and thank you to all you lovely readers.

now let's make it an even 200, shall we?

also, the facebook page ain't doing too shabby with 140 fans.

and, here's some other good news:

remember my product review for modestpop.com?

well, they're offering 10% off to katilda.com readers!

#wootwoot

just use the code Katilda at checkout.

their stuff is dirt cheap anyway, but the code certainly doesn't hurt.

it is a day of celebration!

mayhaps i'll go eat more BBQ chips,

from the bag as big as my torso:

if i live to be 100,

katilda

into the woods i went

i thank You God for most this amazing

day: for the leaping greenly spirits of trees

and a blue true dream of sky; and for everything

which is natural which is infinite which is yes

e.e. cummings

did you notice my katniss everdeen swag,

katilda

p.s.
how much do i want a nightstand made of vintage suitcases??
cabin decor always inspires me greatly.

how to be a terrible audience member

earlier this week,

i took my papanwa out on the town to see les miserable!

my 4th time seeing it, and still epic as ever.

however.

today's post is brought to you by the following classy patrons:

the three women in Portal 10, Row 5, seats 28, 26 & 24

the couple sitting in front of me

and some inappropriately vocal person in the floor seats

straight from the example of the experts, i give you...

how to be a terrible audience member:

1. whisper through the entire performance

2. whisper increasingly louder as the night goes on

3. laughing during emotional numbers is also a great idea

4. singing along in a silly voice is an even better choice

5. is someone texting you every 20min? go ahead and answer!

6. and be sure to shine your phone around as long as possible

7. ignore the pointed stares and exasperated sighs from your neighbors

8. let out a catcall during the end note of "I Dreamed a Dream"

9. try and always be the last one clapping, because that is totally still funny after 8th grade.

10. cheer loudest for the trashy Thenardier characters at the end, which actually ignites a fair level of humorous irony. 

11. disregard the fact that you're sitting in tiered balcony seating, and be sure to lean wayyy forward for the entire show. 

because i so loved seeing your heads block half of every scene.

*insert every sarcastic facial expression i can muster*

good thing it's nigh unto impossible to ruin such an amazing show,

katilda

modestpop.com Claire shirt review

hey howdy hey!

welcome to my very first a-clothing-company-sent-me-something-in-the-mail-so-i-could-wear-it-and-talk-about-it-on-my-blog-and-that's-really-really-cool blog post!

heard of modestpop.com?

it's a new clothing site with a unique business model:

all items are $15 or less

all clothing is modest

new items are posted daily, and stay for 24 hrs or until sold

for my review, i selected the Claire top:

and here's a crappy fuzzy photo of me wearing it:

ruffled collared shirt underneath from target, denim skirt from goodwill,

shoes from payless & belt from who-knows-where.

what i like most:

the floral print & bold colors

the ruching on the sides makes it good for tucking in

the zipper at the neckline

what i like less:

it could be because i have a significantly small shoulders/chestal region,

but the neckline was too wide and gappy on me.

but, i like the layered collar look so it works out!

and yes, i used the word "chestal."

and guess what?

i'll be hosting a modestpop giveaway verrrry soon!

go stalk their site in the meantime & stay tuned :)

modestpop sounds like soda pop,

katilda

p.s.

click here to learn why modest clothing is important to me.

california, in 12 pictures

i left my heart somewhere on the west coast last week.

i tend to do that when i travel.

but seriously,

four solid days on huntington beach?

and newport beach and balboa island?

a girl really can't complain.

so here it is, in exactly 12 photos:

1. my first rental car. 25 never looked so good.

2. sooo...batman beach towel? yesplease.

3. yes, that would be a caramel apple gelato cone.

4. artistic wanderings in a plaid shirt, because i can.

5. the gorgeous LDS temple in newport

6. my lovely traveling companions

7. toes in the water

8. devouring my PBJ on the beach

9. "it's just that my insides, want to be on my outside."

10. warm shoulders & sunset magic.

11. mormon girl water toast

12. adventurous paddle boarding excursion in the harbor

aaaand just to make it an even baker's dozen...

13. adventures with my sister's crazy-eyed autocorrect:

glory glory galapagos,

katilda

effective cat storage.

this needed to be shared:

Source: krautchan.net via Katie Elizabeth on Pinterest

nine lives,

katilda

writing: foretaste

i hold you in the space between my teeth and the back of my throat

i know this taste

i know this part

i know what's next

i curl my tongue around the acrid bite

and put off the inevitable

knowing it'll sting on the way down

but there's always hoping that it won't

that maybe this time it won't

won't

there's always the hoping

music: "til kingdom come" coldplay cover

so, sometimes i sing.

i fell back in love with this song after the new spider-man movie.

i mean, i fell in love with andrew garfield?

something.

in any case, enjoy!

apologies that you can't hear the guitar so well.

for you i've waited all these years,

katilda

7 thrifty ways to save money on travel ▲

when i graduated from college and suddenly had an income,

i got bit by the ol' travel bug in a big way.

in the last couple years i've been to:

washington d.c., san francisco, portland, seattle, new york city, and boston

plus several small trips to utah and california.

now, i'm not rolling in the dough by any means.

remember how i worked for nonprofits for a couple years...?

SO HOW DO I AFFORD IT?

1. sign up for airline emails

you really can't argue with a $280 round trip to NYC, yo.

2. check out price comparison websites

one favorite is hipmunk.com, but it doesn't list southwest.
the google flight search function is also really great.

3. don't check a bag

pack light by bringing staples that can go with multiple outfits, such as a neutral cardigan and a couple versatile shoes.

4. stay in hostels

super cheap rooms, free breakfast, cozy furniture with more personality & less of the stale hotel feel, and new friends to make!

win win win.

the college inn, where i stayed in seattle

5. make some of your own meals

finding a local grocery store and dropping a few dollars on instant oatmeal, a loaf of bread, peanut butter, jelly, ziploc bags and granola bars at the beginning of the week can save you a ton of moolah.

moolah to spend on churro vendors at pier 39.

6. travel during the off-season

the northwest in november? don't mind if i do!

flight prices during odd months are sooo worth it to me.

plus, none of the attractions are crowded! bonus!

7. pick your priorities

note: i'm a thrify traveler but i'm not obnoxiously frugal.

skipping experiences to pinch a few pennies is absolutely NOT my style!

so, pick your priorities and be willing to spend on them.

you can save in other areas to make up for it.

my #1 must-not-miss agenda item in NYC:

and there's all my advice.

what about you guys? how do you save moneys on travel?
have any uhmazing trips coming up?

the moneys the moneys,

katilda