My New Best Friend

The long winter days take a toll on our skin, our lips become chapped, our hands crack from the cold and it really does become a never ending cycle. So why am i complaining? We all go through it right? Well I am going to add a cold on top, like the worst cold possible? You know one of those colds where your nose is a fountain, and it literally is impossible to get through 30 minutes without 4 or 5 tissues. Ya, that was me, all week, and still now.

It all started with a headache, which lead to a sore throat, which lead to the area between my nose and my lips (they must have some scientific name for that) becoming so chapped and dry that even speaking was like a death sentance. What was the cause? Going through a box of tissues in 24 hours, that were NOT the ultra soft kind. Twenty four hours of blowing my nose has left me now, a week later still suffering from an extremely sore upper lip. What will save me you ask? After an emergency trip to Shoppers, and $47 dollars out my beloved wallet for drugs, three boxes of kleenex (ultra soft) neocitran, and most importantly for my life saver VASELINE!

It has changed my world, and not left my side. The vaseline sits with me at all times. And is always smeared onto this upper lip region of my face with pride, off to class I go with a shiny nose. Another helpful tip for those of you bestowed with a cold - bring the whole kleenex box! It is soo helpful to have when you have those sniffles in an 80 minute lecture, and even more handy - bring a plastic bag for all those unwanted, sickly used ones. Vasleine is my only hope to cure what this 'no name' brand of kleenex has done to me.

Which leads me to another interesting point that the ladies of HOJ were discussing today, why do they even make non soft kleenex? There is no point to it. They only cause more harm than good, it is like wiping your nose on the toilet paper you find at the gas station which we all know is not pleasant.

So if any of you are having trouble with a cold this winter, I do highly reccomend investing in some vaseline and ultra soft kleenex. and in case you are wondering the vaseline is in the baby aisle (saving you some trouble - took me a while to find).

So signing off, until the next time i have something life changing to tell you.

xxx

winter workouts don't have to be a struggle

i recently developed a cold that, combined with my normal breathing difficulties, truly has made life horrendous. between downing bottles of benylin and drinking cups of tea made with halls (thank you, wendy williams!), i realized the intense ache across my abdomen. that got me thinking: i may not be able to go to the gym right now, but at least i'm getting one hell of an ab workout from all the coughing. and really, let's face it: sick or not, it's winter, it's cold out, and it's hard to drag oneself to the gym on a regular basis. so here's a few PROVEN (yes, i know they always say 'proven', but these ones are tried and true at the hoj itself!) ways to keep those winter workouts successful. and they're all from the comfort of your own home! now that's both convenient and efficient.

1) become an asthmatic - no longer something to be ashamed of! all that coughing really tightens your tummy and the swollen throat stops you from eating as much as you would like. double bonus?

2) dance around your kitchen to music from the islands - seriously, zumba/salsa/pilates classes are overrated. clear a space in your house, blast some beats, and let yourself go wild. you'll be feeling it for days, AND you'll avoid the sweaty gym with its sweaty people.

3) live in a house with four sets of stairs - who needs a stairmaster when you run up the stairs twenty times a day to get that one thing you keep forgetting on the top floor?

4) let yourself cry - depressing? maybe. but personally, i believe that crying makes you stronger. and those heart-wrenching sobs work your whole upper body, while lifting a weight off your shoulders and making you feel lighter. so if you need to, let those tears fall.

5) let yourself laugh - living with six other girls has made me realize the importance of laughter. it doesn't matter what you find so funny, or why, just let it happen. whether it's by reading the latest TFLN, watching the office, or simply joking around with your besties, laughter really is the best workout. beats 100 crunches any day!

well, i'm off for more drugs.

bye for now!

Word of the Day: Kinky

How it should be used:

kink-y [king-kee]
- adjective, kink-i-er, kink-i-est.
1) full of kinks; closely twisted: a kinky wire
2) (of hair) closely or tightly curled
3) Slang. marked by unconventional sexual preferences or behaviour, as fetishism, sadomasochism, or the like.

How we use it:

"Here's your pizza and four waters" "KINKKYY"
"You're all over it today" "KINKYY"
"What a nice mug" "KINKKYY

Pretty much, we've transformed the definition of the word. Would someone like to call and inform Webster? I vote ev... the perscribed drugs might help her persuasivness.

So it begins....

This is a story about a house of seven girls, a house that we like to refer to endearly as, The House of Jane, or quite simply, the HOJ.
We're seven girls, all unique in our own way. Some of us emotional grenades ready to go off at a moments notice, others stay calm and collected at all hours of the day. Among us, we are nerds, random sports fans, social butterflies, fashion divas, figure skating wannabees, photographers, poets, and future world leaders (o and I guess we are students too) - but most of all we are crazy, fun, loving, down to earth, sweatpant addicts, carb devouring 20 year old girls.

Our stories all began in our first year of university in September 2007, and now it is 2010 and we thought it was time to start documenting the crazy house we live in. Three floors of laughing, screaming, shouting,and the more than occasional death glare. We are convinced that the mirrors have scientitsts on the other side studying how we survive each and every day, and we are even more convinced that the house is haunted. Against all odds and through the power of baked goods we have remained friends, and learned to live together, laugh together and most of all love together.

These are our stories.