Mornings

I don't know about you guys, but I really don't do well with mornings. Like, mornings and I just don't mix. If mornings were peanut butter, I'd be.... wait, no that analogy doesn't work -- everything goes well with peanut butter.

But yeah, look, I'm sure I could be a super organized person if it weren't for my innate ability to sleep through alarm clocks and wake up twenty minutes before I'm supposed to be somewhere.

I say "innate" because, damn, this shit runs in the family.

Now that we've got that little prelude out of the way, I'll tell you how today's "la rentree" was.

I tried my hardest guys. I really did. I went to bed at twelve (shh that's early) and couldn't fall asleep because my body clock was all fucked up from the holiday sleeping schedule, and then I'm pretty sure I also had a dream where I couldn't fall asleep but I'm not even sure if I'm confusing my dreams with reality or not. I must've slept through my seven a.m alarms, because I was eventually woken up at 8:16am by the home phone ringing. And everyone in my house was asleep. So, yeah, definitely a hereditary trait.

So, my parents and I scrambled to get ready, and luckily I had gotten everything (food, clothes, bag, etc) sorted the night before. Go figure, there was traffic and my mum ended up completely running a red light (I could hear police sirens in the back of my mind) and I got to school at 8:40 ughhhhhhh

At least I didn't have to walk in to the packed hall full of teachers ad Y9/Y12s by myself because Mei was late as well and we shamefully strode past the back row of teachers together hahaha

I'm in Ms Diegal's class (oh my god thank the lord I have a nice tutor teacher) and the other Y12s in my class are Ella W(almsley), Lily, and Emmy who wasn't here today. And omg the Y9s we have are so adorbs, one of them is French and I'm basically going to practice my french speaking skills with her through the year wooh

Yeah and then we bummed around in the class for a while and took two tours even though 2/3 of the Y9s were old girls already and had athletics prelims which wasn't particularly interesting to talk about.

OH MY GOD THEY RENOVATED THE TUCK SHOP A BIT AND THERE IS A 60"(?) FLAT SCREEN TV IN THERE AS WELL AS ANOTHER SMALLER TV AND THEY CHANGED ALL THE SHELVING AND SHIT AND THERE ARE OTHER TVS DOTTED AROUND THE SCHOOL LIKE IN THE 2ND LEVEL OF ATRIUM JUST BEFORE THE STAIRS TO THE LIBRARY THERE'S ANOTHER TV????? LIKE OMG SCHOOL, PRIORITISE PLS -- PUT MORE MONEY INTO THE EDUCATIONAL SIDE OF THINGS.

we also have a barista working to make overpriced coffee/hot choc in the atrium holla


samai got me a shark necklace from the maldives THANKS SAMAI

two oh thirteen

Ahhh, it's that time of year again. And by "that time of the year", I mean, the glorious, promising beginning of a long and super busy 2013.

2012 was a great year for many, and a terrible year for some. For me, it was a pretty uneventful, fast 52 weeks full of a lot of late passes and stressful cramming of extracurriculars. Not to mention, the dreadful life-or-death decision of NCEA or IB.

But 2012 was also full of awesome memories like going to Wellington for choir nationals, and going to not one, not two, but three concerts (do flight of the conchords count? I'm saying they do), and turning the big ol' sweet sixteenth. Along with that, I've also developed and made some great friendships, and rekindled old ones, and best of all for the most part, I've been pretty satisfied with life, and think I've probably grown a lot as a person.

Sadly I have been seriously neglecting this blog and I have barely posted, with only 42 posts in 2012 compared to 100+ in both 2011 and 2010 whaaaat?! I think this year I might change my style of blogging slightly and perhaps use proper grammar and spelling for the most part. That doesn't mean I'm going to tone down the swearing and ramble-y tone, I just might start actually capitalizing words properly from now on, ha.

Well, let's get down to business, shall we? Here were 2012's new year's resolutions:

• All Excellences in both examinations (that means studying in the holidays....) 

I got all excellences in midterms, but not for term 3 mocks :'( curse you physics and calculus!!! I don't have results for NCEA yet nor do I want to have them... Ignorance is bliss, they say.

• Get a job and keep it so you have a steady income 

Well, that really didn't work. I'm still trying though. If you havent read my first job-hunting adventure,  read it here. Sadly, my second attempt at job hunting resulted in me missing a bus and turning up late for an orthodontist appointment where they tightened my braces and made life suckish again, but uh, I digress.

• Stop waking up after 12pm during the holidays cuz you waste your break away (this means not going to sleep at 5am every night!) 

........ Oops.

• Save money and use eftpos only for emergencies and gifts maybe. 

I think this worked for the most part? However, because of christmas, my bank account is once again, severely depleted and have I mentioned how much I really nEED A FUCKING JOB?

• Exercise everyday so that you have more energy and so you're not as lazy

HAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHA (this may have worked for the first half of the year? Not sure, can't remember. Definitely not anymore though)

• Keep room substantially tidy 

Wow lmao NOPE

• Make more friends i.e. put yourself out there more and stop being a bitch to the people in the year under you. 

I think I tried, a little, but not enough. Better than before but I definitely need to work on my terrible attitude ugh yuck

• Eat healthy, don't overeat, drink plenty of water and learn to cook healthy things (eg not mi goreng) 

No, no, nope, and no.

• Restart piano and work on your diploma (practice everyday) 

This may very well be the most unsuccessful resolution of the bunch. I haven't even touched a proper piano piece for a year.

• Do more charity work, sign up for first aid classes, volunteer. 

Damn, I really wish I remembered to work on this one, but I feel like even if I did remember this, I wouldn't have had time to do any volunteering because my schedule was just constantly so damn busy.

• Don't let rejection get you down. 

Well, I think I probably got this one done pretty well. Got rejected from Saints, felt pretty shitty, but re-auditioned and it paid off. Got rejected from Kidsline, said fuck you, violently defaced the letter, and moved on. I can't remember any other rejection tales but feel free to remind me so I can take a trip down rejection avenue.

Speaking of rejection, I'd just like to add how my experiences with rejection this year taught me a couple of pretty valuable things. Sometimes, it's not even your fault you got rejected. It doesn't necessarily mean you're not good enough -- many times it's just because it's just not the right thing for you. You may not be suited for that particular thing, but there are so, so many other opportunities that you can take full advantage of that you  may find a lot more fulfilling. Other times, rejection is just an encouragement for you to reflect and change what you did wrong, and try, try, try again. If you don't get a second chance at that specific thing, at least you can take what you could possibly improve on and use it for future reference. Rejection isn't an end, my lovelies-- it's just the beginning.

• Grow taller, skinnier, boobier. 

Oh, I take it back. This one was definitely the most unsuccessful.

• Make the most out of 2012 :)

You know what, I think I did! I think that the extracurriculars I signed up for made me unintentionally focus on this resolution, and help me develop my person and teach me important life crap. Debating and netball umpiring forced me to be confident in self-assured, even if I wasn't. Choir was great for teamwork and proving that I could have time management skills if I forced myself to. I won't bore you with what I learnt through everything else like shakespeare, brain bee, chinese dance group, peer mediation, netball, speech and drama, pilates (lmao don't think this counts) and finally learning how to swim since I'm sure you get the point. I think that getting the top English prize is something I'm allowed to be proud of, as well as getting distinction in my speech and drama grade 6 exam, winning silver and best maori piece at choir nationals, learning how to swim, and my work on my art board. In terms of things that aren't awards, I think although I didn't get great marks in mocks, I've finally learnt my lesson after finals, and I'm ready for what IB (and 2013) wants to throw at me. 

Well, that's last year, I guess. Onwards to this year! My 2013 resolutions are... (drumroll):

• Don't look down upon anyone or have prejudices towards people because of appearance, status, or the people they hang out with. I hate it when people treat me as inferior, so what gives me the right to treat others the same way? Treat everyone equally with kindness and a good nature.
• Learn to prioritise - your tumblr and the amount of tumblr followers you have will in no way benefit you at all in 5 years time, so why spend your valuable sleeping time on updating your blog? Put school first, as year 12 is the most important year for college applications and you seriously cannot forget that.
• Be willing to help others and go out of your way to help them, but in saying this, don't sacrifice your own grades or health for it. Stop selfishly hiding your good work to yourself because of your fear of others stealing your work and taking credit for it. (Just so you know, I have this 'fear' because it's already happened once before). IB requires you to be able to share your knowledge with your classmates so that you can all help each other to study.
• Arrive early at school, every day, so it becomes a habit. Quarter past eight. Being late three out of five times every single week makes you look extremely disorganized, and also, it's embarrassing that Mrs Wong already knows you by name.
• Go to bed at 11pm-ish every night. Even on weekends. Good sleeping habits will positively affect your schoolwork, attitude, skin, and like, everything else in life.
• All 7's in All Exams. Don't leave studying to the night before your exam. CMON VICKY YOU'RE BETTER THAN THAT GET YOUR SHIT TOGETHER 
• Read books that will change your life and your views of the world.
• Exercise everyday for at least half an hour (oh yes I am bringing this motherfucker back)
• (one especially for the holidays) Get up before 11am four out of seven days a week

And, finally, of course, make the most out of 2013!

but before i do the dishes

my holidays so far have been rather uneventful mainly because i've been devoting most of my time towards attaining a job however unfortunately that shit ain't going so great ya know ya feel ya capisce

aside from the early-december birthday parties, i have not really gone out much.

last saturday i went to the beach with jade which was lovely despite the gloomyish weather that only brightened up late afternoon when we were almost getting ready to leave (CURSE YOU AUCKLAND WEATHER!!!!) and i brought a bag load of books and magazines and ended up barely touching any of it because we entertained ourselves just fine by being loquacious motherfuckers

did you know that seagulls tend to enjoy hanging around at beaches, and especially enjoy your company if you are consuming a nutritious meal of fish and chips??? i had not been informed of this fact and was not exactly pleasantly surprised by the generous companionship of those white rodents with wings

i just really dont like birds cramping up my style ok LET ME ENJOY MY GREASE RIDDEN FOOD IN PEACE

i did get mildly sunburnt in a particularly odd shape, because of my swimsuit (damn i wish i could call it a bikini because calling it a 'swimsuit' makes me feel like a middle aged woman desperately clutching at the tendrils of her youth... but i cant because it's a one piece) and now i have the fucking weirdest tan line ever

but yeah it was fun

here are some pictures that jade wont let me post on facebook

in case you didn't previously know, jade is like,
super hardcore. thuglife4lyf

the first break in the clouds for the day
 jade's stockphoto reaction to seeing blue sky

she legit sprinted to the mr whippy truck no joke

before that i went christmas shopping with jade and cherry and already briefly wrote about that in my previous christmas post. basically i didnt get anything until after they both ditched me and then i got my shopper's zen on and went CRAZY, powerwalking through the stores and up and down queen street i was on fire im telling you

ive literally done nothing ugh i cannot remember anything else because i HAVENT DONE ANYTHING ELSE

oh i went job hunting with lizzi in mt eden to no avail

the outerlink bus driver was a complete dick and saw me RUN towards the bus, knock on the bus door, flail my arms around like a madman, and he still drove away. and since i'm a classy son of a bitch i yelled after the bus, screaming "WHAT THE FUCK YOU FUCKING ASSHOLE" and people stared at me

and this made me 15 minutes late to my orthodontist appointment. and i had to walk in the rain. AND THEN I GOT MY BRACES TIGHTENED WHICH MEANT I COULDN'T CHEW *ONCE AGAIN*. seriously, i was just getting used to them, and they fuck shit up again do u have something against me aye cunt fuckers

im trying to remember anything else i did oh man my life is so sad. ive jsut basically been walking around alone a lot handing out cv's and getting blisters and sweating a lot ugh

i got 1000+ notes on my first gifset ever on tumblr? but that's not very interesting and i've already over-celebrated this on twitter hgghahgahaha

but like here ya go




MY LIFE IS SO BORING OH MY GOD IM SORRY

the last day on earth was anticlimatic to say the least??? spent it complaining about not being at the beach and resorting to reading on the road on my deck with expired sunscreen and thinking about how much nicer the whole experience would have been IF I WAS ON THE BEACH



ok i regret making this post now because i just realised how antisocial i've been
i need to sort out my new years resolutions omg

tomorrow i am going boxing day shopping LET'S SPEND EVEN MORE MONEY YAYYYYYYYY

ok seriously now, dishes.

joyeux noel bitchessssssss

well, merry christmas my beautiful chickadees I hope you all had a great day full of joy and loveliness and laughter and all that great stuff that makes life worth living

in case you didn't have that much of a day, don't worry, because christmas is just a consumer holiday that comes along every year to devastate your bank account and cause endless hours of stress whilst buying presents

but yeah i had a good day

(sidenote i have no idea where i suddenly picked up using the word 'whilst' instead of 'while' but whenever i talk or blog or whatever i always seem to prefer using 'whilst' which makes me sound like i'm trying too hard to speak intellectually but oh my gOD I CAN NOT HELP IT WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME)

stayed up to 3am last night watching the lizzie bennet diaries on youtube oh man if you have no idea what i'm talking about you should go start watching it like, right now, it's great. seriously, especially if you love pride and prejudice, DO IT.

ok i got a little sidetracked there but as i was saying

got woken up at 9 to my brother knocking on my door so that we could "UNWRAP PRESENTS" and then proceeded to wait for him to take a goddamn shower before we all went downstairs to discover what wonders there were to behold once we got past the festive wrapping paper 

my family is pretty small and the only person from my family who i can really get a present from would be my brother, since my dad (and mum) just give us money (cha ching) however i make up for this by exchanging presents with sueyeon and, this year, amy (brother's longtime girlfriend) has also been added into the mix.

my brother got me black le specs sunglasses aw yuss i hope i don't lose them or break them though; sueyeon got me a gorgeous light creamy brown leather handbag from san michelle bags and the sweeeetest card; amy got me a notebook from typo and guylian chocolates; and dad gave me $100 that's basically going to have to last me till next christmas lol OH AND MUM GOT ME VANS IN AMURRICAH FUCK YES I HAVE SHOES

i got my parents a 3pc bathroom set and a "magican can opener" which was EXCESSIVELY EXPENSIVE BECAUSE I THOUGHT IT WAS ONE OF THOSE AUTOMATIC CAN OPENERS THEY ADVERTISE ON TV OH MY GOD I WAS *SCAMMED* the shame!!! no srsly i was so disappointed when we opened it and realised it was just a normal, overpriced can opener i just :'(

my bad for not even reading the labelling hahaha i just read "magican" and was like IT'S MAGIC OH MY GOD I MUST BUY IT

ah well i have learnt from my mistakes

i bought my brother a 4pack nivea for men face-care-products thingy cuz he needs to fix his face duh ha good one vicky bURN

and i bought amy a plastic smoothie cup thingy with the plastic straw idk what it's called but it was from typo and i wanted one so i got it for her instead haha

and i bought sueyeon those cool flippy clocks at typo and a disposable 'frame' camera that seemed endearing but im ngl i have no idea how the hell you're even supposed to use it but she likes sentimental things like that so eh

typo was having a sale, obviously.

on the same day as all my christmas shopping, i also bought swimwear yay and on that particular wednesday afternoon, i spent $138, not including bus fare.

oh joy to the festive season and all of its... festivities...

my brother got my dad a ralph lauren shirt, and got amy a new stereo for her car as well as new speakers and an ed sheeran cd. amy got my brother a ridiculously expensive shirt from somewhere i dont know as well as a calvin harris cd and something else i cant remember oops and she got my dad lindor chocolates because cmon what else could she have gotten my *dad*.

and then everyone went out for a couple hours, and for the rest of the day i watched the teen choice awards and pissed myself laughing at all the horrible embarrassing script writing and uncomfortable celebrities 

you just have to appreciate the little things in life ja feel

after that i made red velvet cupcakes and used the oven in my house FOR THE FIRST TIME

WE BUILT THIS HOUSE 4 YEARS AGO

THE OVEN HAS NEVER BEEN USED

NEVER

EVER

EVER

and i stole that poor oven's virginity like i was a varsity jock at a college frat party and it was the shy freshman, wide-eyed and innocent to the horny motherfuckers that surrounded it.

the cupcakes were a disaster by the way, i can't ice to save my life, and in case you missed my tweet: the icing bag i used was a lousy flaccid plastic bag that, after i had finished icing, looked incredibly (and disturbingly) like a used condom

which carries on my 'virginity' metaphor quite nicely don't you think

look at those ugly motherfuckers i have to deal with 12 of them

this is why i don't bake

then i caught the end of pride and prejudice on tv and once again it made me cry like a little bitch (seriously is that movie on every christmas day, every year?!) and i went upstairs onto my laptop to watch more lizzie bennett diaries and then i fell asleep for 2 hours, napping horizontally across my bed on a curled up position since i'm too lazy to clear the shit off my bed obviously

oh when i mean "napping horizontally" i mean, i was lying on the bed like... horizontally... instead of lengthways. obviously, everyone naps horizontally by lying down instead of vertically aka standing up i didnt mean that ok just go away

and then my brother woke me up to take us to the restaurant where we had the traditional christmas dinner of peking duck

wait, what do you mean people don't celebrate christmas traditionally with peking duck? yes you do! it's a pagan customary dish!!

hold up, no, what? turkey? who eats TURKEY on a holiday occasion ha wow dont be silly!!! you are so silly, you!!!!!!!!!!

wow this turned out to be a rather long post

hope y'all had swell days

i have to go do the dishes now oh mon dieu L'HORREUR!!!! (oh boy i watched an education the other day and i realised i do that pretentious thing that jenny does where she randomly speaks in french except i don't have a nice enough french accent to do it pretentiously and instead i just sound like a fucking idiot goodday)

i'm bored

 Amazing:Your OTP in 3 fandoms? DESTIEL in supernatural; DELENA in vampire diaries; BROTP in how i met your mother

• Blue: What song do you listen to when you're feeling down? ....hmmmm I just realised while trying to answer this that I very rarely feel "down", and usually if I'm upset, it's from being frustrated or angry, but not sad. And if I'm frustrated or angry I like to listen to loud rock music. I don't really depend on music when I'm in a negative mood since I like to wallow in my despair with peace and quiet idk most music i listen to is pretty depressing and chill anyway
• Cup: Do you drink Tea or Coffee? i drink both WHY DO I HAVE TO CHOOSE however i drink tea more often just because it's easier and i dont own a plunger ugh instant coffee powder
• Dopey: Tell us an embarrassing story. oh i hate it when i get asked this, like wtf do u think i like thinking about my embarrassing moments NAH BITCH I REPRESS THOSE MOTHERFUCKERS but often i do remember them in really inconvenient times such as in the shower or making breakfast and suddenly i'm paralysed from embarrassment for a few seconds and have to distract myself and think about my aforementioned otps
• English: How many languages can you speak? none very well lol (this isn't even a joke, i suck at verbal communication, especially now with braces, and i stumble my way through shanghainese which has been getting progressively worse as words start to sound unfamiliar in my mouth, and i am terrible at chinese AND I MEAN *TERRIBLE*, and lol french is totally out of the question 
• Fear: Tell us three fears. fear of things that flutter aka moths, birds, butterflies even; fear of heights but i like to see it as a healthy sense of self preservation; fear of the unknown~~
• Game: What was the last board game you played? most likely monopoly: world edition, because that is the only board game we own apart from scrabble (scrabble in an asian family is always particularly... interesting)
• Harry Potter: What was the last book you read? currently reading on the road, an education and girl with the dragon tattoo simultaneously but the last book i FINISHED reading was the five people you meet in heaven (i s2g i answered this in the last meme i did)
• Injury: Have you ever walked into a glass door? most likely
• Jump: Do five jumping jacks/star jump. you motherfucker
• Kiss: Who's your biggest celebrity crush? YOU CAN'T JUST ASK ME THESE KIND OF QUESTIONS NOW I HAVE TO DO A HUGE PRO/CON LIST AND GO THROUGH ALL SORTS OF SELF-INSERT AU'S TO DETERMINE WHO MY BI- ok jensen ackles probably
• Love: Do you believe in marriage? yeh
• Money: What would you do with 1 million dollars? pay school fees and pay off my parents' debts and pay for college and if there is any left over, invest and/or travel the world with my family
• Naughty: Tell us three things that your parents disapprove of? sleeping late, going out 'too much', my insistence on questioning and debating everything they try to tell me instead of accepting that their word is law and acting like a good bitch (mostly my dad though)
• Oops: What is one thing you'd like to change/fix? my jaw but lol i'm already getting that wish granted
• Picture: Post a pic of your lovely face.
• 
  
• Quality: Name three of your favourite blogs. smolderhalder.tumblr.com ; mostly10.tumblr.com ; edlunds.tumblr.com ; assstiel.tumblr.com ; onionchester.tumblr.com ;  fuck it's really hard to just stop at three
• Rapunzel: Name three Disney movies that you adore. what do you count as a disney movie though, does it have to be classic fairytale movies? i'm just saying that it is, or else there are way too many movies to choose from. ok, tangled, snow white, and i can't think of anything else. lion king? ,
• Star-sign: When's your birthday? july 5th put it in your diaries motherfuckers
• Teacher: What do you aspire to be? successful, happy, satisfied and making a positive difference to the world/people's lives
• Unite: Do you sponsor a cause? not really because im not educated on any specific causes enough to be a full supporter of it
• Varsity: Do you play/watch sport? i play netball poorly,am learning how to swim, and going to start dragon boating next year wooh! and no i dont watch sport.
• Xylophone: Do you play an instrument? i guess i play piano except i havent played it properly for about 2 years. 
• Yellow: What's your favourite colour? this is a stupid question i love all colours i love the blue in the sky and in the sea i love the pale pink and oranges of a sunset and i love how i am poetic as fuck
• Zoo: What is your favourite animal? ugh i regret partaking in this meme 

another one of these things

• Do you usually sleep with your closet door open or closed? i never care, depends if i've shut it during the day
• Do you take the shampoos and conditioner bottles from hotels? ofc i'm a cheap motherfucker im getting value for money bro
• Where is your next vacation? like, never?????
• Who do you think reads these? no one
  
• Do you have a calendar in your room? nope
• What’s your plan for the day? finish burger king application, print out cv's for tomorrow, read a bit more of the girl with the dragon tattoo (this book is really letting me down ok i dont give a shit about harriets murder) and possibly watch perks of being a wallflower online because gifs on tumblr are killing me. OH, AND COOK DINNER WITH MY BROTHER BECAUSE MY MUM'S LEFT THE COUNTRY AND NOW WE HAVE TO SOMEHOW SURVIVE ON OUR OWN
• Are you reading any books right now? lol yes girl with the dragon tattoo and i'm 15 pages into on the road because like i said, i got bored. i finished "the five people you meet in heaven" a couple nights ago, which was brilliant, btw. and nice and short.
  
• Do you ever count your steps when you walk? nope 
• Do you ever dance even if there’s no music playing? there's always music playing in my mind
• Do you chew your pens and pencils? i used to but apparently you cant with braces
  
• What is your “Song of the Week”? anything from yeah yeah yeahs
  
• Is it okay for guys to wear pink? yeah??? colours are not gender-specific?!
  
• Do you still watch cartoons?  if they're on tv, sure.
• What do you drink with dinner? water or juice, which always pisses my mum off haha
• What do you dip Chicken Nuggets in? BLOOD SWEAT AND TEARS
• What is your favorite food/cuisine? not chinese (unless it's made by mama xu)
• What movies could you watch over and over and still love? devil wears prada, the hunger games, iron man, get him to the greek, the social network, princess diaries, bringing down the house, 
• When was the last time you wrote a letter to someone on paper? kahunui
• Can you change the oil on a car? by oil do you mean petrol or like, inside the engine?
• Best thing to eat for breakfast? my breakfast is usually at around 1pm, so uh, toasted chicken sandwiches with a side of bacon 
• What is your usual bedtime? 1am on school nights, 4am during the holidays
• Are you lazy? this is a stupid question the answer is yES
• Afraid of heights? definitely
• Occupations you wanted to be when you were a kid? always wanted to be a doctor (or an actress)
• Hot tea or cold tea:  hot
• Tea or coffee? depends on the coffee
• Favorite kind of cookie? white chocolate macadamia nut
• Can you swim well? not particularly well but yay at least i can swim now woohoo
• Can you hold your breath w/o manually holding your nose? probably not
• Who do you want to see right now? my mum lol 

family

the concept of family is this interesting and odd puzzle that is really quite hard to define. i think it's ambiguity really stems from the fact that no two families are the same, and sometimes (as bobby singer off supernatural famously said) "family don't end with blood".

For example, in my family, we're a pretty unapologetic bunch. We never really deliver heartfelt 'i'm sorry's or even talk about our past arguments where heated words were exchanged. Never. It's obviously rather unhealthy but I guess it works for us. I can have a huge falling out with my dad, and not talk to him for three days and completely avoid his existence, but things will inevitably be forgiven and forgotten after those couple of days and we'll return to normal. Is that a normal thing among families? I wouldn't know, since my family is the only family I have right now.

I guess that's not really true though, depending on your definition of the word 'family'. Your close friends can be your family, too. However, you can still be a part of a family even if the group of people involved are complete strangers to you. You don't have to like them, you don't have to trust them, but they may still be your relatives and thus, your family.

I just finished reading 'Room' by Emma Donoghue (I had read half of it earlier this term and had to return it since it was overdue, but got it out again) and in the novel, the theme of family (especially between mother and child) was pretty predominant, along with the themes of childhood and other existentialist shit like "what's really real" and whether our idea of 'normal' is only normal because it's what we've lived with and been exposed to for our whole lives etc etc but yeah, whatever, read the book and you'll get what I mean since I don't really want to explain the whole plotline tbh