Measuring Tape Girl is now on YouTube

Measuring Tape Girl is now on YouTube!

‘Measuring Tape Girl’ now available for download on the iPad.

‘Measuring Tape Girl’ now available for download on the iPad with the Play Festival Films APP. To download click on this link: PLAY FESTIVAL FILMS. You can download the iPad APP and watch the films' trailer for free. Further, you can check the nominations and awards, that each film earned at various film festivals. And you will be able to read the biography and filmography of each film's director. You can share the film’s poster art and recommend the film to your friends by email.

Each film can be bought for the displayed listed price. After you have bought the film, there is no expiration date for viewing the film. For all your bought films, you have an option to 'STREAM' (watch immediately) and/or 'DOWNLOAD' (watch later) the film.

Once you have downloaded the film to your device, you will then be able to PLAY (watch anywhere, anytime) that film, from your device only. You do NOT need any network (Wi-Fi or 3G) connection to watch the downloaded films.

Please note that both options (stream and/or download) requires the high speed Internet connection, i.e. Wi-Fi. We do not support any streaming or download of videos over WWAN (i.e. 3G network). PLAY FESTIVAL FILMS.

MEASURING TAPE AND MICRO-BLOGGING THE FOCAL POINT OF COSTUME DESIGN AND SELF-ACCEPTANCE FILM

Measuring Tape Girl Screening at the National Film Board of Canada

Hosted By Influential Canadian Female Blogger: Casie Stewart fromhttp://casiestewart.com/

Measuring Tape Girl is an examination of self-perception and indecisiveness. A young woman approaching her thirties and turns to online video blogging as a means of expressing her doubts and fears. Creating an alter ego named ‘Measuring Tape Girl’, she measures herself against others and before anyone rejects her, she does it herself.

Measuring Tape Girl screens at the National Film Board of Canada in Toronto as part of Culture Days on October 2nd at 3:00pm and 4:00pm. The Measuring Tape dress and Jacket will be on display at the screening.

Starring : Jessica Embro http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2630834/

Has self-doubt and pressure to measure up within social groups been taking to a new level by using social media? You tell us. To attend the Measuring Tape Girl screening during Culture Days, please email Chrissy@vocabcommunications.com to save your seat!

***LIMITED SEATING***

About Pasquale Marco Veltri

Pasquale Marco Veltri is a Canadian filmmaker whose unique vision crosses the boundaries of culture and language. His films, Politics of Fear, Measuring Tape Girl and A Day in the Life, have screened in Canada, France, USA, Britain, Italy, and Egypt. www.pmveltri.com

To blog or not to blog

I’ve decide to blog about my inability to blog. I don’t feel my thoughts quite have the value needed to be spread across the internet for just anyone to read. My thoughts are my own and being such I believe they should be kept private and safe from prying eyes. I have a lot of hopes and dreams I’d express in public if I actually believed one of them might come true. Is that enough self-deprecation or should I continue? I think that’s my problem...I never stop turing things into a joke or a sarcastic comment. Not only is humor my shield it’s all I have. I’m afraid that if I ever faced a problem head on without turing it into a sarcastic game I might realize that I actually can’t do this. That I’ll never be good enough. It makes me angry. And I have an anger problem. I hold on anger until it ferments into unbridled rage. Anger is weakness. I’ve always know that, I have. I just wish I wasn’t so weak. I have made drastic attempts to let go of anger this year and it’s been working but sometimes I fall off the wagon and get upset. Maybe it’s the heat or the attitude of the people that surround me at work but I’m having trouble holding in my sanity. Hey, what’s the worst thing that could happen if I just stood up on my desk and told everyone to go to hell? My frustration leads to more frustration. I can and I can’t cope with all of my thoughts. This is why it might be a good idea to blog a little more. Blogging yearly is not the best of ideas. How about I try to blog once a month and see what happens. I’ll turn my pent up rage into verbal diarrhea and pray that no one reads it. I will release my anger into the universe and set myself free from the bondage of my own self-hate. I have good news though. It’s coming soon. Stand by for my postcards from my journey towards self-acceptance.

Eeyore kinda day:

I’m having and Eeyore kinda day, week...month. Is wallowing a life skill I should be exceedingly proficient at? I see darkness everywhere. I don’t want the holidays but they’re here and they’re holding my self-esteem and happiness at gunpoint. Every year. Every year I let the holidays sneak up on me and I don’t get ready in time. I don’t plan ahead and get things done so I get overwhelmed. I don’t know what to buy, I don’t know what to write and I don’t know who to be. Which me am I suppose to be during the holidays? Loving daughter, supervising adult, little girl, patient listener or drunk embarrassment?

With so many choices it hard to choose. I don’t want to be any of them. There’s never enough money, time or perfection for me to make it through the holidays. I usually run out of one of those things before Dec 15th and then it’s down hill from there. I just want to be me but I haven’t figured out who I am yet. I haven’t discovered who I want to be, I just keep finding out who I don’t want to be. Maybe we can cancel christmas? Maybe I can make canceling christmas my christmas wish? I do believe in canceling the holidays....I do...I do... I do. But you all still have to buy me presents.

New Mistakes

My fresh start.....wasn’t so fresh. I can’t keep falling into old traps and making the same mistakes. At the very least I need to make new mistakes. Things go up and down and down and up but the trick is to say on course. To keep moving forward. It’s so easy to get distracted. I know where I want to go and I basically understand how to get there so....off I go. Looking back it’s easy to see where I went wrong. It’s easy to laugh at the old me. Thank god for that. At least I can laugh about it. I’m getting too old for mistakes. I should be closer to my goals by now. I should have more things.....or at least that’s what they tell me. I don’t need or want what they have so why does it matter. I have my mission, I have my life. I’m not following the same steps everyone else is taking....so to them I’m heading in the wrong direction. I’m making mistakes. What others consider to be my mistakes, I consider to be my greatest successes. I don’t know which me I want to be today but I know I don’t want to be you or anyone else. I’m willing to make new mistakes. I'm willing to run in the opposite direction of everyone else. I know who I am and I know what I want. When I grow up, I want to be me.

Fresh start

I need to Restart my mind. I need to let go of the numbness caused by repetition. When we were all in school starting over was easy. The new year began and it was an automatic do over. A clean slate. We started again and built our hopes and dreams for the new year. Lately I’ve been forgetting to dream. I wait in line for over priced coffee and think of nothing. I wonder when the work day will end and I forget to dream. I've forgotten to hope. Losing yourself is easy when you have no direction. I’m building a new path for myself. I new direction to run in. I live each day without goals or hopes or dreams. I feel like I’m just breathing and going through my days like a robot. Automated pilot is not a way to live. To stop all this I’ve created new projects to work on. New goals. New dreams. Of course my first new goal is to get new goals but even that is a start. I’m heading somewhere. I just haven’t figured out where somewhere is. It’s always easy to get where you going if you know where you want to go.

The ‘Not good enoughs’

I think I have a serious case of the ‘not good enoughs’. I’ve suffered from the ‘not good enoughs’ all my life. I’ve always wanted more. I’ve always need more. From me and from everyone. I want and need to accept myself as I am and I do. I really do accept myself for who I am. For the first time I care about myself and I love myself enough to be proud of who I am and what I do. It’s easy to fall back into old traps though. Old habits can follow you around, they hide in your shadow. When perfection is the only option, you will always fail. So many of the rules I live by are designed to set me up for disappointments. My disappointments drive me forward. But where is forward? Where am I going and is it where I want to go. I have to reinvent my thought processes. I have to let go of the past. I’m not good enough, your not good enough.....nothing is good enough....must be erased from my mind. A vital step to becoming who you are is acceptance. If nothing is good enough...you will never be able to accept who you are. You will never be able to care about yourself enough to move forward and grow. I want to grow and I want to be me. So I’m shaking off the ‘not good enoughs’ and becoming a stronger and heather me. It’s easy, really it is. I am who I am and that’s it. I don’t have to be perfect because no one is. It’s the lack of perfection that makes us human. I need to embrace my mistakes and take ownership of my silliness. My silliness and my mistakes make me who I am. Without my imperfections, without the parts of me I’m trying to get rid of or hide.......who would I be? I am my mistakes. I am my silliness. I am my 10 extra pounds. I am my early onset wrinkles. I am belly. I am slightly lazier eye. I am good enough. I am enough. And until I learn and accept that I am good enough, I can never become more than I am.

The Self-Esteem Workshops

Let the Self-Esteem Revolution begin!!! I’ve decided to go on a journey and I want you to come with me. I’ve spent my whole life thinking I wasn’t good enough. I’ve spent my whole life wondering how I could be perfect, how I could be more beautiful. I’ve never accepted myself for who I am, until now. I never want anyone else to go through what I have. Having a strong sense of Self-worth is not arrogance but an essential part of being a fully functional human being. Draw on the power inside you and make choices based on your goals; knowing that you can achieve anything you set your mind to. Anything is possible once we develop a sense of self-worth and a strong belief in ourselves.

Measuring Tape Girl will be going to schools in the local area and performing for 15 minutes. After the performance Measuring Tape Girl will be talking to the students about self-esteem and self-images issues. If you or anyone you know might be interested in having Measuring Tape Girl come to your school please contact measuringtapegirl@gmail.com or pmveltri@gmail.com

Oprah is God

For my whole life I’ve questioned a lot of things but I’ve never questioned the fact that Oprah is God. I grew up wanting to be Oprah. No, I didn’t want to be a talk show host. I wanted to be independent and strong. I wanted to become whoever I was going to be no matter what happened. Throughout my whole life, Oprah has been there. She was there when my Mom was watching TV when I was a kid. She watched me from a far during college and keep me at my best. Oprah always asks the tough questions and she is always there, watching me as I watched her. I know, you’ll think I’m crazy but Oprah is my guardian angel. My light, my hope. I’ve never doubted or question anything she has ever said. Her word is gospel. So, let Oprah say it, so let it be done. I found this video of her talking at the graduating class of Duke University and thanks to the internet I was there. Oprah was talking to me and she was talking to you. So many pieces of wisdom in this speech. So many truths. I cry every time I watch this. I am moved and inspired to grow with every one of her words. Some of you may not think that Oprah is God and you may be right but we should thank God because God made Oprah and gave her to us. Oprah, I Love you.

OPRAH GRADUATION SPEECH AT DUKE UNIVERSITY

http://www.oprah.com/world/Oprah-Winfreys-Duke-University-Graduation-Speech-Video/topic/world

I do believe in you

I do believe in you, now go and make me proud. What do you believe? Who do you believe in? Who do you support? Please let them know you support and believe in them and that you also support and believe in yourself. It makes a difference. It’s that last push we all need to keep going. According to wikipedia, Self Esteem is a term used in psychology to reflect a person's overall evaluation or appraisal of his or her own worth. Self-esteem encompasses beliefs (for example, "I am competent" or "I am incompetent") and emotions such as triumph, despair, pride and shame. A person's self-esteem may be reflected in their behaviour, such as in assertiveness, shyness, confidence or caution. Self-esteem can apply specifically to a particular dimension (for example, "I believe I am a good writer, and feel proud of that in particular") or have global extent (for example, "I believe I am a good person, and feel proud of myself in general") http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-esteem

What is self esteem to you? What is it about yourself that you are proud of? I know. This is hard. But really think about this. Make a list. Talk to your friends about this. You need to believe in yourself. You need to believe in the choices you make and take responsibility for them. This is an exercise that gets easier over time. Like any muscle in your body, Self-Esteem gets weakened if you don’t use it. Having a strong sense of Self-worth is not arrogance but an essential part of being a fully functional human being. Draw on the power inside you and make choices based on your goals; knowing that you can achieve anything you set your mind to. Anything is possible once we develop a sense of self-worth and a strong belief in ourselves. Who do you believe in? I believe in you, now go and make me proud.

“Open Happiness”

Personal branding is the new black. Your online presence...that is to say your online life will one day be more important than your real life. And if your under 30 it already is more important. I like to think of my blog and webpages as an online portal into my soul. Thanks to all this new technology I get to decide which one of my souls you get to see. Who am I? I don’t know? Maybe my blogging and twittering will help me figure out who I am. Maybe it will help me become who I’m suppose to be. I used to have hopes and dreams. I did. Somehow my hopes and dreams got lost along the way and they turned into regret. Regret is a bitch. I would rather spend my life failing to do what I love to do than to excel at something I don’t want to do. But like most people I’m trapped by my pay check. I trapped by my condo fees and car payments. My choice of life style has determined that I am not allowed to follow my dreams. Who is Measuring Tape Girl? What does her brand represent? I want my brand to be about self-acceptance, self-esteem and hope. There is a lot of growing I have to do before I can be true to my attempt at branding. I pretend to have accepted myself for who I am. I claim to be confident and full of hope but some days are better than others. If I have something to live up to, something to hope for then......well......at least that’s something. Maybe I can unlock my potential and become the me I want to be. If Coca-cola can “Open Happiness” then maybe I can “Unlock my Potential”. The main difference is that I’m not full of sugar, caffeine and false advertising. OKay. Maybe I am Coca-cola. I did have a lot of coffee this morning and I’m full of my own delusions but their is a difference. When I open my happiness, when I unlock my potential I will directly change someone’s life and give them hope. The life I will change is my own.

“Run, Baby, Run”

I’m still Running.......YEah!!!!!! No, really I am. Boot-camp was a bitch but I survived. I’m sore in places I didn’t know I could be sore in but I feel alive. I do. The haze in my brain has cleared. I’m not going to go nuts with this workout stuff but I’m going to keep at it. It’s been too long since I challenged myself. Too long since I was tired from actually doing something, instead of just being tired. Being Tired for no reason can become a bad habit. You wake up, go to work and then you sit down. You go to lunch and you sit down. It’s a never ending cycle of moving a few steps and then sitting down again. In just a few weeks I feel stronger and more awake all the time. It’s crazy. Endorphins are fun. They don’t come in tall, grande or venti but I still like them. I’m not exactly addicted to this Runners High but I could get used to it. Image living in a world where you can exceed you physical limitations but being more physical? Instead of being fueled by frappucinnos I’m now fueled by activity. Crazy I know. I’m tired of sitting down. I don’t want to be an office Zombie for the rest of my life. I have a plan, an emergency exit. I can’t give it all away now but don’t you worry my virtual friends......freedom is near. I plan to shuffle off this office coil that binds me to my sadness. I’m going to break free. I have freed my mind and now I’m getting the rest of me ready to create a new reality for myself where I can actually help others. Help them move away from self-hate and towards self-acceptance. It has been too long since I have challenged myself. Too long since I stood up and made a change. I’m getting ready. Getting ready for my very own person revolution. Revolution = evolution. Stand by. The evolution will not be televised.

Social Media Masturbation

I have grown tired of everyone’s and my own social media masturbation. When you’re done tweeting, facebooking, linking-in, youtubing and digging,.....how to you have time to actually interact with human beings in person? In my case I’m too shy to actually talk to people but that’s just me. Must we all broadcast our lives and pretend that having thousands of followers equals out to some kind of internet pseudo-fame? If everyone has hundreds of followers and everyone is broadcasting their lives, then doesn’t that change what fame actually is? Doesn’t that change your ability to actually keep track of things? Do we actually really know anyone anymore?

Social Media Masturbation is when you over promote yourself online, without adding any value to the social media network. Everyone one does it but some people only SMM. If we exist in networks where everyone is social media masturbating then what do we really get out of it. Hey, LOOK AT ME!!! Hey, Look at me...... only works so many times. Please tell me something new. Please share your thoughts and your feelings. Please help stop Social Media Masturbation. Please try to add value. Please try to share. I’m going to try to be true to myself and my self-deprecation. I’m also going to try to find a way to move passed my self-hate. One day I will be a real person and I won’t have to be Measuring Tape Girl anymore. I’ll have a real name and a real life. All I can do for now is try to share my truth with you. The truth of the matter is that a blog about Social Media Masturbation, is in itself a form of Social Media Masturbation.

Splinting the Shins

I went running. I’m a running super star but I have the habit of getting shin splits. I have to get proper shoes and I have to stretch more. Without much training or equipment you can start running. It is also true that without much training or equipment you can start running and hurt yourself. Running is one of those things that makes you question a lot of things. Can I do it? Can I keep running. How much longer until I have to stop? How much longer until I have to throw up, how much longer until I throw up...again? You’re suppose to run through the pain. If you run long enough you stop calling things painful and eventually you start referring to pain as discomfort.... Which means running eventually drives you crazy. I’ll never be one of those Marathon Zombies who run around with there sugar gel packs. Eating a banana and running is also not my idea of a good time. It gets me out into the sun though. It makes me move. The more I move, the more alive I begin to feel. I’m going to try a 10k. I’m going to see if I can run for an hour. I’ll see if I can get there by labour day. Remember, remember the fourth of September......We’ll see. We’ll see. For now I’m just trying to give myself another reason to be in the sun. The shin splints aren’t so bad this time. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shin_splints

Or should I say medial tibial stress syndrome, isn’t so bad this time. I have MTSS. Maybe I can start a fundraiser or get myself registered as a charity? That could help me pay for the correct kind of running shoes I need. :) Apparently, I’m suppose to put a towel under my feet and then make fists with my toes: to pull the towel towards me? This will help me with my MTSS. Anyone interested in donating to my buy proper shoes for running fund please email me directly ;) My legs do feel better today. So tomorrow I’ll be back out running. Run. Just run. It’s suppose to build self-esteem and help keep you healthy.....I hope to get both from running. For now, all I can say is “Run, Baby, Run”.

I am a hurricane of hope

I know, I know. I'm a lazy blogger. I've just been so busy, frustrated, upset, angry and mad at myself that I couldn't write anything. The whole point of this blog was to give me a reason to write. A reason to focus all my thoughts and feelings into a positive purging online exorcism of pain but I've gotten distracted. I forgot what I can get like when I don't take the time to think about who I am and what I'm trying to do. I want to be set free from my anger. I want to accept myself for who I am and move forward. I really do. I'm going to make a better effort to focus my thoughts and feelings and express them in words. I really have to, if I don't we might return back to the dark times. The times of chocolate and Frappuccino addiction. I promised to start running... I haven't yet, but I will. It's going to happen. I'm going to piece my life back together. I'm going to care about myself and I'm going to care about others. No, really. Don't make me punch you. Don't doubt me and make me punch you in the face. I will not be stopped. I will not be stopped because I am a force of nature. I am a hurricane of hope. If you think you can stop a hurricane....well, then your almost as crazy as I am. I warning all the voices in my head. The ones the judge me. The ones that tell me I'm not good enough. The voices that tell me I'm fat. All the negative voices in my head better pack their bags and buy some plane tickets because I'm not listening to you anymore. I am good enough, I am not fat and all the voice in my head can go to hell. If I could punch the voices in my head I would but I tried that once and it kinda hurts. Instead I'm standing up and saying go away. I don't need the voices in my head telling me that I can't do things. I can do things and I will. They might try to stop me. The voices in my head may start screaming at me until they regain control of my mind but they will fail. They can not stop me because I am a hurricane of hope.

Dialing 411 to find a boyfriend

I read this story online this week about a woman who called 911 because she needed a husband. It was an emergency. She felt she needed to call 911 to help her find a husband. If she can call 911 for a husband maybe I can dial 411 for information on how to get a boyfriend. I suppose I'll get a boyfriend eventually. But to get one of those there’s all these things you have to be willing to do. Like dating, Speed dating, slow dating, group dating, blind dating and my personal favorite - Online dating. Online dating is like a full time job. It’s really not anything like dating. It’s an experiment in how much online spam you can collect in one day. Never put a picture up on the first day. Wait a week and get a list of potentials. Two days after you put your picture up you’ll really have to delete your profile and leave the site. I join 10 different online dating sites on a 3 month cycle. I’m not sure I’m online dating or playing an elimination game creating a list of boys I know to never contact again. When it comes to online dating I like to be different people and have different careers from time to time. It just makes it all more interesting. Of course the only problem with this is that the boys are doing the exact same thing. Can you believe these men will lie to you online? They lie about their height, weight, age and income. It’s one thing for me to have a little fun but when one of these balding married bastards somehow gets through my security defenses and they make it to the first date....well it’s really annoying. It’s so much better than the alternative. I mean online dating is safe, its fun and provides great stories for parties. Imagine the pain of actually interacting with other singles at a singles event? Or meet up groups? Sports outings, dinner events....lock and key dances. I mean if speed dating actually worked then why are so many people still single. 20 girls and 20 guys meeting for 10 minutes and then moving on the the next person. Six ten minute meetings every hour of every day, three hundred and sixty five days a year. If these things really worked these companies would go bankrupt because we’d all be married. I’m not suggesting that meet-up groups, speed dating and online dating are designed to fail so that they can keep taking money from you.....but they are not designed to succeed either. I’m not asking for perfection. There’s just a few things that every boy needs to have before I’ll send them a smiley face or throw a sheep at them. It’s such a struggle. A life of online connections leads to false hopes and disappointment. Image what the boys think when they see me. I can’t compete with all the models in those magazines. I mean I’m just human. If I see another magazine telling me how to please my man....... I might just have torch the store I see it in. Burn it to the ground. Why is the story always about me pleasing my man. When does he learn to please me? I have enough repair work to do on my own self-image without having to worry about pleasing someone else. I’m not going to lie to you....I’m a little bit of a fixer-uper. It can almost make you lose all hope. I don’t want you to think I’m trying to bring you down. I’m not going to bring you down or take myself down any further. I’m not going to give up. It’s easy to be sarcastic and cynical for the rest of your life. It’s easy to be mad and upset at yourself and the world. Sometimes you have to hold on to hope, especially when it’s the only thing you have. So please keep hope alive.

Hot Yoga + Frappuccino = Bad idea

The final score.....

Hot Yoga: 1.......Measuring Tape Girl: 0

My addiction to Frappuccinos has hit a low point. It turns out that drinking Frappuccinos and going to Hot Yoga may not be the best idea. Maybe I didn’t eat properly but what ever it was strongly suggests that regular temperature yoga is hard enough for me. Okay. Okay. Here’s what happened. I get there, I’m ready, I’m looking cute and we go into the room. The air is dry and everyones almost naked but I’m still okay. Thirty minutes into the hot yoga class I start to feel a little weird. I’m was getting a little dizzy but nothing really that bad. At around the forty minute mark the world went a little dark for me. Luckily we were on the floor in some position or things could of gotten a little more dangerous. I got really, really dizzy and then I don’t remember. I woke up a few seconds later and okay...... I’ll admit it: My name is Measuring Tape Girl and I passed out in Hot Yoga class. I got up and grabbed my stuff and left the class early. I went to the bathroom to hide and come up with a plan. It seems body was mad at me and I was still a little dizzy. My body politic was having an election to find out if I was going to throw up or go to the bathroom. In the end the votes were so close that we were considering a recount but there wasn’t time for that. So I threw up a little and then went to the bathroom. Yeah. I said it. I want the world to know. Don’t have a Frappuccino for dinner and then go to Hot Yoga!!! Looking back know it’s kinda funny. “Did you hear the one about the girl that passed out during Hot Yoga?” Like an alcoholic who just punched his best friend, I think I just had what is called a moment of clarity. Hello, my name is Measuring Tape Girl and I have a Frappucino problem. Why do they have to mix coffee, sugar, cream and more sugar together to form the most satisfying sugae/caffeine buzz I’ve ever had? Why do the straws have to be green and so pretty? I’m taking a stand here though. I only have to pass out once to learn a lesson. The lesson is a simple one:

Hot Yoga + Frappuccino = Bad idea

I think I must be Solar Powered

The sun hits my skin and my problems go away. The wind blows the clouds in and I get cold. It was one of those hot days that gets cold. It feels like it might be late September but it’s June. The bright sun made me smile. It did. I wouldn’t lie about something like that. My energy is up by 200%. Now if only I had something to do with all this energy. I’m usually so burnt out after work that I don’t want to do anything. Maybe I should just keep eating and drinking coffee. We’ll....just one more coffee, then we’ll stop......I promise. What I really want is some ice cream with coffee in it. Everyone is out today. Taking in the sun and watching everyone else. I like watching but I don’t like being watched. I always feel like they can see right through me. Some days I just look at the sidewalk so I don’t have to notice anyone staring me down. Just once I’ll like a boy to walk by me and not look me up and down as he passes judgement on me. I guess I should be used to that. It’s the girls that do it that drive me bananas. I don’t want to be judged anymore. Not by girls, not by boys, not by anyone. I am standing up right now and looking the world in the eyes and I’m screaming: “Go Judge someone else”!!! Then the sun hits my skin and my problems go away. Lucky for me, I’m solar powered.

I fall in Love three times a day....

Every time I walk down the street I see someone and think.....they look interesting. Or I look down and see that he has nice shoes on and that’s all it takes......I’m in love. Instant love is great, no really.....it is. It saves me from ever really having to develop a true connection with anyone. I’ve spent my life pushing people away. I’ve built really high walls to keep people out. I know to never make eye contact with anyone on the street. Over the years I’ve been sharpening my sarcasm and dirty looks to the point that I’m convinced I could kill a small animal with a few of my deeper glaring looks. When you’re a girl in a city, you have to protect yourself. There’s a lot of crazies out there you know. People who can’t be trusted. People who will hurt you. So I stay inside my walls. I let people in, I do but they need to be what I’m looking for. My dreams are simple. My perfect man may not exist but I’m not looking for perfect. They need to be taller than me but not too tall. I don’t stand on phone books to kiss boys. Eyes...well blue or bluish. Athletic and strong but still gentle and sensitive. And he better be goddamn funny. But not abusive funny or sarcastic funny. Let’s say he has to be entertaining. They better have a job and some money cause I don’t spend time with struggling poets. Well unless they’re funny, blue eyed, a little taller than I am and well I guess if their a poet they’d already be sensitive but not too sensitive. I don’t want a boy who will cry every time I get upset or angry at them. They need to see beyond their own needs and honestly want to help others. Okay, maybe not too many others but at they should at least want to help me. Show a general interest in my goals, my hopes and dreams. I’d prefer if they didn’t make me watch hockey or football and that they didn’t think nights out with their friends are more important than me. It’s okay if they’re a gamer but not a hardcore gamer. If your video game time exceeds the hours of part-time job, please stay at home and play with your controller.

Instant love lasts a few seconds, a minute or two on the bus or it can take a whole hour for you to leave the restaurant without doing more then accidentally looking into my eyes. But if you do, you have me without a hello. Momentary infatuation, fleeting love or hopeless romantic. What ever words I want to use to describe my temporary delusion based love affairs, there are no words that can make them seem a bad thing. Without our delusions what would we be. One day, one of these delusions will last longer than 3 seconds and longer than two minutes. Until that day comes, I’ll just keep falling in love three times a day.