July favorites

Time has flown by and it's now summer on this side of the hemisphere. I was going to do a "how to stay cool in more key" post, but I just don't wear it much during the summer. I'll wear thin dresses, and get rid of most of the layers, sure, but there's nothing very exciting about a post I just summed up in less than a sentence. Well, I'm sure it could be a great post seeing as I really like Mori girl serenity's tips on the subject. The point is, this is not that kind of post. It's a favorites post! Yay!

  It's the 14th, so I'll list 14 of my favorites, how about that?

1. Cake flour, Softasilk cake Fluor in particular. I've been practicing making scones(Almond and lemon with a lavender and lemon simple syrup), and switching from all purpose wheat flour to cake flour totally changes the pastry. I think it's partially because cake flour is ground into a finer powder, but also because it has less protein in it which changes the texture a bit. I still haven't perfected the recipe yet, but when I do. oh boy, when I do! I just can't wait till I get it right. 
2. Anne with an E season 2. I can not tell you how much I enjoy Anne with an E. The story line, and character development really pulls you in. I love it. I've yet to finish season, but I've been using the show as a reward for every week of classes I finish. (I'm taking accelerated college courses, and they're a little more difficult than I thought they'd be.) One thing that I'm really grateful for is Anne's love of words. Her excitement in things that seem so insignificant, something like an old tree, is made into a grand adventure. I think it's hard to capture moments in words, and even harder to do so on a screen (this is why I love books) and yet, this show seems to do it with ease. I won't spoil anything in case whomever decides to read this also watches the show, but  I will say that if Anne wrote horror books for kids, I'd buy them.
3. Leadership secrets of Attila the Hun by Wess Roberts. I don't usually pick up "Leadership" books.The school curriculum pushes everyone to be a leader, to be in front, and in the lime light. That's one thing I really don't want. All attention is not good attention, and I just prefer to be around small groups of people anyway. This book, however, highlights some characteristics that made Attila an effective leader and they didn't always involve being the center of attention. Now I know that he's not someone that people typically say they want to emulate, however the book addresses things like moral discipline, and accountability. I'd recommend it  to anyone interested in personal development, or into analyzing historic figures (Me.) 
4. IGTV. I'm not that great with social media, but I love IGTV. it's like integral, but it lets you take longer videos. I haven't explored much of it, but I did watch the creator of Irregular choice shoes talk about his brand.
5. Blue Danube by Strauss.  I'm sure I've mentioned this song on this blog before but it is, save the second waits by Shostakovich, the most relaxing and enchanting waltzes ever. That's a completely subjective opinion, but hey it's my blog :D  I've been listening to it a lot as of late, and love picking it a part. 
6. speaking of music... Musopen is a cool site that offers license free music, free sheet music, and has a radio. I've been teaching myself to play the violin, and love getting my hands on as many free resources as possible. It also separates composers by era. I'm a fan of romantic period pieces, but have recently found some pretty cool ragtime composers.
7. Last one relating to music, I promise. Drab majesty! I know I talk about them an awful lot (If you've been on this blog for a while, you'll know that I really like goth music), but I have the chance to go see them live, and I'M SOOO EXCITED! 
8. My house plant. I named it Shelby, but then thought Sheldon was more fitting. I kind of just call it Shelly for short. I got it during after making some raingardens for my school.( But I'll talk about what that is in a different post.)
9. Molly Roberts- Her speak. Now I mentioned that I'm not a very religious person, but I do like to learn about others. I like to be able to relate, or at the very least, understand someone. I've been interested in some things pertaining to paganism predominantly getting closer to and protecting nature, understanding and improving the self and transforming chaos into art. I know that these elements can be found in other religions, but I can't research everything at once, and I've been drawn to research this one for a wile. Molly Roberts has a playlist of meditations and oh man, did I need those. I'm usually the person who loves facts, and will disregard anything that can't be proven, but there are days where I can put that aside and just listen to someone else. I like the way she shares her thoughts without malice, or ill intent towards others. I like hearing how she defines and betters herself through tools that I don't understand. It's odd, but I like knowing that I don't know everything; It means there's something to explore. Molly has a couple of videos on making a grimoire, and some really grounding chatty videos as well.
10.  Late at night when almost nobody is awake, is when I can hear myself think clearly. This is typically when I get the most creative. 
11. Sweet Mildred! this shop has some cute clothes and accessories for Lolita, but can also be used for mori kei. 
12. What plants talk about documentary. I would recommend this to anyone who loves plants. It's covers how mother plants nurture, and communicate to their offspring. (Spoiler: plants can scream) 
13. Friday the 13th! muwahahahaha! Whenever Friday the 13th rolls around so do the savings. Lots of goths shops/ darkly inclined shops have sales on this day. whoo hoo!
14. my hiking backpack! Hiking is something I need to do to relax. It's kind of hard to do because I can't be in the heat too long, but I've figured out how to rig a title parasol in it. It's super handy, and has a removable water  bladder, and A TON of pockets. The padding is wonderful, and the straps spread out the weight, so my back isn't in pain. you can pick it up here.

That's it for now. Do you have any new favorites?