Some infinities are bigger than other infinities

I feel like I may be overdoing this whole blog thing. But for some reason I just have a lot to say right now.

I just got back from seeing The Fault in Our Stars. I'm still feeling a bit emotionally drained.

It was absolutely incredible. It far exceeded all of my expectations. But this post isn't a movie review.

This post is about a quote from the film (and also the book). There is a moment when Hazel Grace and Augustus are in Amsterdam sitting down with Van Houten. Van Houten is speaking nonsense about God knows what when he mentions the concept of infinity. He tells Hazel and Gus that some infinities are greater than other infinities. Later, when Hazel and Issac are reading their eulogies for Augustus at his pre-funeral funeral (so he can hear what his best friends would say about him). Hazel thanks Gus for giving her the best infinity that he could have possibly given her, even though it was shorter than she wanted.

But this got me thinking. And to be honest, this may have been brought up in the film, so I don't think I can take credit for this thought. But let's be real...I was sobbing pretty hard at this point in time. Anyway, everyone enters into our lives for their own amount of infinity.

Let me explain this infinity concept a bit more. I'm going to use Hazel's example. You see, between 0 and 1, there are infinite numbers, for example .1, .01, .011, etc. But there are even more infinite numbers between 0 and 2. Using this idea, the infinity between 0 and 2 is bigger than the infinity between 0 and 1. Make sense?

I've been spending the last little bit thinking about the different infinities that I've experienced with people throughout my 21 years here on earth. There are a few specific infinities that come to mind.

The first infinity is that of my parents. Thus far, they have been a part of an infinity that began (for me) when they brought me home from the hospital. Wow. That just got me thinking about how I don't know anybody right now who was there when I was born. Perk(?) of being adopted? Anyway. There will come a time with this infinity comes to a close, but thus far it's the longest running infinity that I've got.

The second infinity is the one with my best friend. I've known this girl since we were like three years old. It's incredible how much she and I have gone through together. It doesn't matter how much distance is between us or how long we go without speaking, we always pick up where we left off last. I feel as though this infinity is unique. I don't think there any very many out there like this one.

The third infinity is a bit more depressing. It's that of this guy I was briefly involved with last semester. It was nothing serious, but nonetheless damaging. And you know, I think that's okay. Not all infinities are 100% good; they also aren't 100% bad. It's a delicate balance. While this infinity is basically over, I'm thankful for it. It's helped shape me into who I am today typing this blog post. Not all infinities are meant to last for a long time.

The last infinity is that of all of my good friends from school. Man. I don't know where I would be without these people. I've gotten so close to them in the past few months and even made new friends. It seems as though all of these infinities have become interwoven. I don't know how to explain it. I guess these infinities seem as though they'll never end. But maybe that's wishful thinking.

It's an interesting concept, isn't it? It's a lot to think about and digest. If you haven't already, I recommend you read The Fault in Our Stars and then see the film. Or watch the film and then read the book. Either way, it'll change your perspective on things. But I would definitely get on that if I were you.

xx

Can I be happy 100 days in a row?

That's the question, isn't it?

I'm sure by now you've heard of the 100 Happy Days Challenge. If you haven't, click here.

At the beginning of the year, I saw several people that I follow on social media posting pictures everyday with the following hashtag: #100HappyDays.

I didn't think much of it. To be honest it seemed a bit like a fad of sorts. I didn't want to get involved with it. But I saw a post on tumblr today that made me change my mind.

One of the folks I follow on social media is Gemma Styles. (Yes, she is elder sister to Harry Styles, 1/5 of One Direction.) She had taken part of the challenge, and I had loosely followed her postings. I wasn't aware that she had reached the end of her 100 days until I saw a post on tumblr where someone compiled all of her (almost) 100 photos and used part of the caption from her last day.

Soooo I'm done! To be honest I started this because I was feeling really quite unhappy at the time and now I'm pretty content with how things are going, which (oops) did cause me to slack off a bit towards the end. Possibly a coincidence but I recommend you start day 1 tomorrow if you need cheering up!

For some reason, this stuck with me. Now, I've not been feeling particularly down. (On the website to register that I was partaking in the challenge I rated my overall happiness at 7.) But you know, I thought to myself, "Self, what's keeping you from being at 10?" I couldn't answer that question.

So as of today I am taking part in the 100 Happy Days Challenge. Feel free to follow my journey here.

Can you be happy 100 days in a row?

xx

Stars with Faults and Towns made of Paper

I'm an avid reader. If you put almost any book in my hands, I'll probably have it read within about 24 hours.

One of my favourite authors has recently become John Green. Yeah, technically he write young adult fiction, but there are some stories that transcend age.  One of those stories is a book that has its theatrical debut this week, "The Fault in Our Stars".

When I was a freshman in college, my best friend growing up texted me one afternoon saying, "Have you heard of TFIOS??" My immediate reaction was, "Ermmm, what?" because I had absolutely no idea what on earth she was talking about. She ended up calling me and explaining to me about this magical book she had just finished about a girl named Hazel Grace Lancaster and a boy named Augustus Waters. Her excitement rendered 80% of her words unintelligible. But at the end of her ramblings she said, "Hold on. I'm going to mail it to you. Promise me you'll read it as soon as it gets to you."

A few days later I was alone in my dorm room, sitting on the floor in the fetal position, crying my eyes out after having finished reading "The Fault in Our Stars".

It truly was a fantastic story. It captured my attention from the moment I picked it up and started reading it. I'm pretty sure I even kept my roommate awake because I was reading into the night. The characters seemed so real, and I found myself irrevocably invested in their lives. I felt their pains and their joys.

As I'm typing this, I'm making plans to see the film tomorrow evening with one of my best friends. Unfortunately I won't be able to see it with the friend who introduced me to the story...she's busy studying abroad in London for six weeks. Fingers crossed I don't turn into a blubbering mess in the theatre.

Back on the topic of John Green... I recently read his book "Paper Towns".

If I'm being honest, I don't know that I can pick a favourite between this book and TFiOS. They're two completely different stories that convey, albeit similar, opposite messages. (Yes, that is possible. You'd understand if you read both books.)

Never have I read a book that I couldn't put down but also had to put down because it was getting to be too much. Looking back, I don't even know what it was that was too much. The first part of the book left me constantly smiling. I loved reading about the different things Margo had planned for her and Quentin. The second part left me feeling puzzled as Q attempted to figure out what Margo may or may not have left for them to find. And the third part gave me a sense of adventure as I tracked Q and his friends' progress tracking Margo down.

I think another reason the book really struck a chord with me was the constant mention of Walt Whitman throughout the story. His poem "Leaves of Grass" plays a major role in the plot. It brought back many memories of being in English class in high school. We spent a great amount of time studying Whitman and this poem.

Anyway, I've discovered that I really enjoy John Green. So far I've read TFiOS, "Paper Towns", "Will Grayson, Will Grayson", and "Looking for Alaska". Next on my list is "An Abundance of Katherines". Hopefully I can get my hands on that soon.

xx

A new place for scribbles.

I've tried blogging before.

In high school I had this wordpress powered blog that I used for random assignments. Nothing personal obviously. After I graduated, that fell by the wayside. I had no use for it.

I also think at one point I had a different blogspot blog...but I don't remember if that's an actual thing or if I'm making it up.

I've got a tumblr, as well. But that isn't really the place for this sort of thing. At least that's my opinion. I love reblogging posts and occasionally creating a text post. But I need somewhere to get my thoughts down and out into words.

This is that somewhere.

I guess this is take four? Who knows... But I have decided that this effort will go further and be more successful than previous attempts.

Welcome to my scribblings.

xx