I am taking a moment from my usual feminist ranting to rant about my (semi-usual) nerd stuffs.

OKAY, 
DIAGON ALLEY IS OPEN AT UNIVERSAL STUDIOS...
BUT, LIKE, ONLY FOR WIZARDS APPARENTLY, BECAUSE US MUGGLES CAN'T GO THERE YET. 

But everyone is there (Bellatrix Lestrange, Luna Lovegood, Neville Longbottom, Draco Malfoy, the Weasley Twins). Okay, everyone except Harry, Ron and Hermoine. But Neville is a hero so he counts tenfold. 
And I'm sad. I want to mingle with the Harry Potter peeps.
I know that the series is over (R.I.P Childhood), but ever since the first movie, I just wanted to BE on set for like 5 minutes (I know I can do a studio tour, but it's not the SAME!--- I will be doing a studio tour though, and I will look like a kid in a candy shop- if the candy was laced with cocaine, because I'll be high on life).  

Diagon Alley will be opened for wizards, mudbloods and muggles alike on July 8th, supposedly (which is approximately...too far from now).
AND, and, you can take the Hogwarts express from Diagon Alley to Hogsmead (I've been to Hogsmead like 3 times, and it IS my version of Cinderella's castle).

*Harry Potter opening music plays*

That's me and I have butterbeer in my hands.

This is my brother inside of Hogwarts. 

My brother is the quintessential Harry Potter

nerd. So...you see dat awe?

Anyway, basically, I want to be at Diagon Alley. But...today. Now. At this very moment. So that I can meet everyone from Harry Potter (and I will call them by their character's names, because that is WHO THEY ARE).

Here are some amazing and depressing pictures that I saw online today from the Diagon Alley preview/premiere (click to enlarge)-

do you hate yourself yet?

God bless J.K Rowling.

I can't wait to visit!

xoxo.

We still live in a world where women are being targeted for being women. 

It doesn't matter that it may not be as prevalent in your country. 
If you are a woman, if you are a man, this should bother you. Women should never be regarded as second class citizens, because we are not second class citizens. I am grateful to live in a country in which I have the freedom to wear, do and say whatever I please (though not always without consequence, due to the underlying rape culture). But I do understand that this is a luxury for some women. Our fight for equality can't just be local. We should advocate for women everywhere. My equality issues here in the United States feel like they pale in comparison to the issues that so many women are facing in countries in Africa, Asia and the Middle East. 
I don't want to make light of the issues that the women here face, but I do want more women  and men to rally together to support freedom and equality on a global scale.
I was disheartened an inspired to write this short entry after watching the following video by Afghan recording artist Aryana Sayeed:

She has received death threats because of her outspokenness, but she hasn't let that stop her.

I hope and pray that I will live to see freedom for women in countries like Afghanistan.

Until that time, I believe I need to spread awareness and advocate for equality as much as I possibly can.

xoxo.

Because of THIS, I felt the need to repost THIS:

(via: imgur. artist source)

There are SEVERAL other things I could add and rant about, but I'm going to leave it at this for now (at least while I gather my thoughts).

#YesAllWomen #NotAllMen

xoxo

Not in that way.

xoxo.

Sweetheart, what have you done to us?

xoxo.

Bring Back Our Girls.

   I will interrupt my incessant chatter about myself to post about the HUGELY important and extremely devastating situation involving the almost 300 girls kidnapped from school in Nigeria.

   The gist of what happened is-Boko Haram fighters (terrorist organization) kidnapped these precious girls as they were at their boarding school in Northern Nigeria. Boko Haram kidnapped the girls (many Islamist terrorist organizations are against women being educated) and have since "converted" the girls to Islam, holding them at an unknown location. These girls have been without their families for a month, May 14th (today) making it an exact month from the date they were initially kidnapped. According to this article from CNN, Boko Haram fighters will "negotiate" a release of these young girls if their terrorist brothers are released from prison. What a ridiculous trade. Precious lives of young girls who stood to be educated in exchange for terrorists who are where they should be (prison). Terrorists threatening the lives of young girls who are trying to be educated, a story similar to that of Malala Yousafzai who I wrote about previously (and I'm sure that less publicized stories on a smaller scale are happening more often than we even know).This is devastating, this is infuriating, this is something that we can't stop talking about. Not until they release our girls. 

   Just so you know, the girls who were kidnapped from school represented a group of individuals who are not always a part of the norm. Here are some stats about Nigeria and education from GirlRising.com-

(Reminds me of the book "I am Nujood Ali, Age 10 and Divorced")

The stats have it. This is happening in this world. Our world. We have a right to protect these children, these girls. Don't let the fight die down and fizzle out of social media. These girls are still not home with their parents. #Bringbackourgirls

Malala Yousafzai

"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." 

-Martin Luther King Jr.

xoxo.

Joy's Poem

I told my cousin, Joy, that in my frustration I was going to write a poem (see entry below). She wrote a brief poem and told me to make sure to thank her. 

Thank you, Joy ;) 

Here is Joy's Poem:

"My eyeballs sunk

 like a scene from Titanic.

Peacefully we wait

for our hearts to freeze."

That girl is a poet! 

xoxo.