#10 - Woodland Park Zoo

Thanks to some great technical support, Pinnacle Studio is up and running! And after nearly a full day of editing and getting to know the program, I have completed another video!

This past Sunday, I met up with a few friends and we all headed off to the Woodland Park Zoo in the heart of Seattle. Seeing as I had not been to the zoo in about four years, this easily made it on my summer bucket list. I absolutely love this place! It's not necessarily because of the animals (though that is a large contributing factor), but rather the fun, carefree, youthful atmosphere! Although, I was a bit disappointed that the tiger exhibit has been closed and won't open again until 2014 - that has been my favorite exhibit since I was a kid.

Nevertheless, I had a fantastic time. The fact that I was able to savor an entire cup of Dip 'n Dots may have been the highlight of the day! And here it is, a compilation of this great adventure, for your viewing pleasure. Enjoy!

 

To see how much of my summer bucket list I've completed so far, click HERE!

Pinnacle Studio 16

I am extremely happy as I have finally purchased some descent video editing software! Yay, no more Windows Live Movie Maker! I knew I didn't want to spend an arm and a leg for it, especially seeing as I am a novice, so I went for the Pinnacle Studio 16. I was initially torn between that and Adobe Premiere Elements 11 (there was only a $5 difference between the two), but one of the employees at Best Buy recommended the former, so I went with that!

However, I am a bit frustrated at the moment. Seeing as my personal computer still does not want to connect to the internet without shutting itself off, I had to put in a URL on this computer in order to retrieve my activation code for the software. But the darn URL doesn't work! I emailed tech support, so hopefully they can help, and I plan on taking my computer in tomorrow to see if I can finally get it fixed.

And what makes this all even more frustrating is that I have a ton of new bucket list footage that I so desperately wanted to go through and edit by today! Oh well, I suppose you are all going to have to wait. That shouldn't be a problem seeing as the number of readers I have is quite minimal... Sorry!

In the meantime, go ahead and watch this incredible video by JacksGap about their trip to Sri Lanka. Beware, many feels will be felt.

#8 - Go To A Frat Party

So I just added this to my bucket list tonight, and don't rush to conclusions before I explain myself!

Me and Jordyn at Phi Delta Theta

It's been a pretty slow week, and I was hanging out at home when a very good friend of mine, who attends Western Washington University, texted me asking if I was free in an hour. My impulsive side kicked in and I was stoked! Her boyfriend is in a dry frat at the University of Washington, and they were having a grab-a-date event and someone needed a date, so that's where I came in!

It was casino night - we all got chips and played some blackjack, 21, water pong, or pool. I had a fantastic time and got to meet a ton of great people! A group of us ended up just sitting around talking for a couple hours, and I loved hearing about the fraternity, how it works, and getting a tour of the place (it was huge!).

I had no idea what to expect initially. Of course, all that was in my head was the stereotypical frat guys, alcohol, and a mess of a house. I was pleasantly surprised - the guys were all gentlemen, the house was tidy, and I had loads of fun!

To see how much of my summer bucket list I've completed so far, click HERE!

Wednesday

I wish there were a fast and easy way to make money. But the world doesn't work that way - you have to earn it. Perhaps it is time for me to do a little job hunting.

I have had the hardest time figuring out what bucket list item to cross off this week. People are bailing left and right and the weather doesn't look like it's going to be too pretty either. However, I am determined - I will cross something off that list if it's the last thing I do!

On the bright side, my Etsy purchases have finally come in the mail, all the way from China! And I must say, I am impressed. Time to start coordinating outfits to match them! If you would like to view the shop that I bought these items from, click here.

Do you have any fun bucket list ideas? I want to hear them! Comment below or email me at establishedinseattle@gmail.com

Have a wonderful Wednesday!

VidCon 2013

Well it has been a very fun weekend! I went to spend a few days with my older sisters and their kids, and I got to see my newest niece for the second time since her birth this past December! I am not even exaggerating, she is the cutest baby you will ever see.

At the moment, I'm still trying to fit a bucket list item into my schedule for this week, but that is really hard to do when all my friends have jobs. I really am grateful for my empty schedule, and I'll be sure to cherish it before I move to Disney World and start working 40-50 hour weeks...

But I think I have found another item that deserves to be on the bucket list: VidCon. In a nutshell, it's an online video/YouTube convention in Anaheim, California from August 1st-3rd. They will be featuring loads of special guests that include (to my extreme delight!), but are not limited to, the following:

Alfie Deyes                             Caspar Lee                             Jenna Marbles
Zoe Sugg                               Jack and Finn Harries             Sam Pepper                      
Marcus Butler                         Alex Goot                                Shay Carl
                   
                              
Excited is an understatement. The first road block is, like it will be for the rest of my life, money. I have it, but I still have college to pay for. But in my head, I figure that I will just make the money back again once I start working in Florida. Second, I don't have anyone to go with, and I doubt it will be much fun if I'm there alone. I know people who would love to go, but I don't think they'd like to drop that kind of cash in one weekend. Tickets alone are $110... We'll see what happens.

To visit my Disney College Program blog, click here.

 

Follow this blog with Bloglovin'!

Gâteau au Chocolat Délicieux

Warning: May cause extreme sugar high if taken in large dosages.

The past few days I had set aside to do absolutely nothing. It's been awhile since I've had no plans, no commitments. And it was great! I got to sleep in until the afternoon, lounge around the house, and eat whatever we had in the cupboards...which may or may not have included multiple chocolate cupcakes left over from my sister's birthday yesterday... Besides feeling pretty well rested, I just feel kind of crappy. I definitely do not recommend excessive junk food and minimal exercise to any of you. 

But on a brighter note, my camera case and bobber hand grip (doubles as a floatation device) finally came in the mail today! I am ready for the water, and so is my action cam! Now I just have to wait around for the rest of my friends to get home from college. Oh, speaking of which! I had the greatest time on Monday - my best friend came home for mother's day weekend and we were able to get together for breakfast before she headed back to Oregon State. We were also able to look into the whole skydiving thing some more, and I'm getting extremely excited!

Well, I don't have a super action-packed weekend planned, just some hang out time with my older sisters and all their children, whom I haven't seen since winter break! However, I do plan on crossing off another bucket list item next week, so stay tuned!

P.S. No, I am not talented enough to speak French. The title of this post is courtesy of Google. Merci.



#9 - Go To A Mariners Game

Today I took my mom and little sister to the Seattle Mariners game - it has been years since we've all been to a ball game together, so it was great! And we won, so that was just icing on the cake! Besides spending quality time with my family, my absolute favorite part was the Dip 'n Dots, which are the most delicious ice cream treat in the entire world! I purchase these at every sporting event I attend, and would probably eat them all day if they weren't so expensive.

A couple weeks ago, I constructed a summer bucket list. I'm new to the whole bucket list thing, so I tried not to make it too far fetched, because I actually want to try and do everything on it! But I decided that instead of just posting the entire list on my blog, I will tell you specific items on the list as I accomplish those tasks (there are twenty items in all). And it just so happens that I have already crossed off three items (two of the items will be linked to their related blog posts).

#5 - Visit the University of Washington
#9 - Go to a Mariners game
#18 - Buy a nice camera

Although they may seem cliche and I am totally a go-with-the-flow type of person, I believe that bucket lists are a good way to expand your horizons and push yourself to do things that you have always wanted to do. They can appear very structured, but there is a certain amount of spontaneity and out-of-the-box thinking required in order to accomplish all the tasks. And the great thing about lists is that you can always add to them!

To see how much of my summer bucket list I've completed so far, click HERE!

Pike Place Market

It has been such a beautiful day here in the great northwest! Unfortunately, that is all said to change. As the new week rolls in, so will the rain. But I was sure to take advantage of the sun while it was here!

This afternoon, I headed into the city with my friend and took a visit to Pike Place Market, which is such a beautiful place to visit in the summertime! I hadn't been to Pike Place for about ten years, so it was so nice to finally go back. We explored the flowers, made our mark on the infamous gum wall, and had the best fish and chips in the world. Then we ended the afternoon with a visit to Kerry Park, which has the best view of the Seattle skyline! And of course, I recorded our entire adventure, which you can see here:

 

And tomorrow is Mother's Day, so be sure to do something special for that hard-working woman that gave you life! As for me, I'm heading to the Mariners game to spend some quality time with the family. Let's hope it doesn't rain too bad!

Visiting the University of Washington

Normally I would prefer to wake up sometime around noon (pardon my laziness), but I was up as soon as I heard my doorbell ring at 10 am this morning! There stood the UPS delivery guy with my brand new GoPro HERO3! It was Christmas all over again, and I had unwrapped my favorite toy. I spend two hours just figuring out how all the accessories worked, then walked straight to Fred Meyer to purchase a microSD card and start recording!

Luckily my friend was heading down to the University of Washington to play some ultimate frisbee, so I thought I would tag along and get some shots of the action. But aside from the frisbee, it truly was nice to go down there and visit a bunch of high school friends whom I hadn't seen in months. I plan on making another trip down there in the near future!

Today, I have also learned that I need to invest in some proper movie editing software. This Windows Live Movie Maker is just not going to cut it, but I had to make do. So, without further ado, I present my first video using the HERO3! And don't be too critical, practice will make perfect, right?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqjPgtw-zxE

YouTube Tangents

Well the last couple days have not been extremely exciting. I feel like my life is going to be pretty boring for the next month seeing as the majority of my friends don't get out of school until mid-June. But that won't stop me from going out and having a great time with the friends that are here!

This morning I headed off to play some ultimate frisbee, and the weather was absolutely perfect! It was just a bit overcast with no winds at all. Unlike Monday, which was the worst frisbee weather ever - apparently Seattle tied with Phoenix as the hottest city in the nation as it reached a whopping 87 degrees!

Then I went to watch a high school softball game at my alma mater. It was very bittersweet seeing as this was the first year that I went without playing in nearly fifteen years, and although they lost in extra innings, it was great to be back and see old friends and teammates! I think I may look into intramural softball for next spring back at school - I just miss it too much!

And last but most certainly not least, I have just heard word that my best friend in the entire world is coming up from Oregon State University to visit for the weekend! We're going to go have some breakfast together before she goes back down to finish up the term. I am so ecstatic!

I was going to post another video-of-the-day type thing down here again, but when I was surfing YouTube, I got off on a completely unrelated tangent watching strings of funny baby videos. Does that ever happen to you, where you start off watching your favorite music video, then end up watching baby pandas sneezing? Well I found a video all about that! Check it out: Sam - Things We Do On YouTube

Etsy

I have made a miraculous discovery. Etsy.

I happened upon this website as I was browsing through the YouTube videos of Zoella. She had purchased a cute bracelet from this site and I thought I would look into it.

As it turns out, this place is fantastic! Basically, it is a site where people can set up an online shop and sell their items to a worldwide audience. Some of the items can be a little pricey, but I was able to find some bargains. As a huge Harry Potter and Hunger Games fan, I was sure to browse the "Geekery" section of the website. And, because I'm a girl, I went straight to the jewelry part of this section. I hope this doesn't look tacky, but I took a screenshot of my cart and the items I bought. Here, you can see the crazy low prices for the jewelry, but the catch is shipping and handling. Normally I would have paid about $6 for this haul, but after they tack on another $6 for shipping and handling, it came to a little over $12. But in the end, I thought it was still worth it and made the purchase. I am so excited for these to come in the mail! Once they do, I will be sure to let you know if I am satisfied with the purchase.

But wait, they don't just sell jewelry. You can find anything from electronics to clothing to gift ideas! If you have some free time on your hands, I would definitely check this place out.

And here is a quick video for your viewing pleasure: How Humans Eat Their Food

HERO3

Welcome to the start of another middle-of-the-night post! I got home at about midnight, but of course I had to watch a couple hours worth of YouTube videos before updating my lovely blog and heading off to bed!

So I have avidly been looking into the market of action cameras in order to film the fun-packed summer ahead of me! As I have mentioned in my most recent post on All Roads Lead To Disney!, I plan to go bridge jumping, skydiving, road tripping, and much much more! But I also want to be able to record all of these memories, and I want a decent camera to do the job. Although I am a newbie to the whole video recording/editing field, I am a quick learner and am very interested! Of course the main downside is that it is a bit pricey when you enter the game, so that is why I was sure to do my homework!

In the end, I have settled on the GoPro HERO3 White Edition (see picture). It is the cheapest of the new line of HERO cameras, but I think it is perfect for a beginner like myself. Along with the basic charger, battery, and USB cable, it comes with a waterproof housing, curved and flat adhesive mounts, QR Buckle, and other assorted mounts and hardware. Feel free to visit the GoPro website if you are interested in looking at their other products.

From what I have seen and heard so far, the HERO3 is at the top of the list when it comes to high-quality action cameras. I am very excited to begin recording my journeys this summer, and I will be sure to link them onto this blog as they are produced, so stay tuned!

Nutella

 My delicious Cream de Menthe shake!

Today was pretty chill as I spent the majority of my time staring out my window and listening to music. But it was great! I haven't been able to slow down from my busy life for quite some time now. And if you are interested in listening to an artist worthy of being put on repeat, I recommend Lewis Mokler - my new favorites include Pieces and Nutella!

But of course, by the evening I was up and out of the house once again. I had to go get my new glasses, which I absolutely love! Although I can't say the same for my wallet. You never really realize how much everything costs until you have to pay for it yours
elf! But it was definitely worth it - I didn't know everything was actually blurry until I got the specs. It's a whole new world!

And what better way to end the night than by getting a surprise phone call from a couple of friends informing me that "your chariot awaits." Not even joking, that is a direct quote. We all headed out to get some Coldstone's ice cream and then hung out and watched Gabriel Iglesias. I haven't laughed that much in a very long time - definitely check him out if you haven't heard of him before.

P.S. I think I have finally settled on a blog template. Sorry if all the changes were a bit annoying! Construction is officially over for the time being.