Chocolate chip cookies were a staple in most of our childhoods. I, for one, have many memories of helping to measure flour and sugar, and then being told NOT to eat the cookie dough (and then eating it anyway). Then again, as a child I was more than happy to be given anything sweet. Now a days I'm not the biggest consumer of cookies-- I find them boring to make and boring to eat. Nevertheless, when I came across Buzzfeed's "Perfect" Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe, I felt a relentless urge to try it out. Why? I'm not exactly sure, especially since Buzzfeed's "Perfect" Chocolate Cake recipe turned out to be such an epic failure. Still, I tried it, and here are my results. (In the video) 
The conclusion that I came to was that yes, these are in fact some spectacular cookies. They have a crunchy outside and a goey middle-- which, for most, is what would be defined as the "perfect" cookie. Would I say they're the best in the entire world? See, the difficult thing is that first off, they're not exactly my preferred type of cookie, and secondly I don't eat a lot of cookies therefore I can't exactly be the best judge of what the "best" is. My favorite kind of cookie is the really crunchy sort-- and while goey is good, I think crunchy is better. The recipe is certainly better than your average cookie, due to the extra ingredients in it such as browned butter and espresso powder-- they just add more layers of flavor that really make it a treat for your tongue. 
The recipe is definitely a lot more work than your average cookie recipe as well-- such as the browned butter. While the browned butter makes the flavor go beyond average, it also takes an age to make. And all the extra steps do add up to a lot of extra time (which can be assumed, I suppose, because adding anything extra would obviously add extra time). I would recommend trying making these if you're looking for something fancy-- maybe to impress people, or maybe just to try a really good cookie. If you just want a quick and easy cookie, this certainly isn't the recipe for you. 
I followed every step given, including the recommended but unnecessary step of leaving the cookies to sit in the fridge overnight. This is a way to develop more flavor in the dough-- actually, it's a trick that many bakeries use, and since I wanted these cookies to be the best they could, I left them to sit overnight. Which turned out to be harder than I expected-- the extra ingredients made this cookie dough even more deadly and tempting than other doughs. All I wanted to do was just gobble down the raw dough, needless to say I was pretty excited to try them after they were baked off the next morning. 
I also added half a teaspoon less salt than the recipe called for after reading a comment on the original video saying the normal amount was WAY too salty. Personally, I think this was a good choice because the cookies I tried seemed to have just the right balance of salt in them, but according to Caitlin, I should've added the extra salt and that would've made them just perfect for her. So, if you're a fan of salty cookies, go for the full two teaspoons. 

Also here's the link to Buzzfeed's video and recipe-- but just so you don't have to click on another link, here is the full recipe written out below as well. :)


Makes 18 cookies
INGREDIENTS
1 cup bread flour
¾ cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons kosher salt or 1½ teaspoon table salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
2-3 tablespoons cold water
1 cup dark brown sugar
½ cup white sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon espresso powder
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
½ cup semisweet chocolate chips
5 ounces dark chocolate, chopped
PREPARATION
Preheat the oven to 350˚F (180˚C). (Unless you want to let the cookies sit overnight in the fridge)
In a medium bowl, sift together the flours, salt, and baking soda. Set aside. 
In a medium light-bottomed saucepan, add the butter and melt over medium heat. 
Bring the butter to a boil, stirring occasionally. As the water begins to boil out of the butter, the milk solids in the butter will separate, sink to the bottom, and begin to toast and brown. As this begins to happen, make sure to stir constantly so the butter browns evenly. It may become quite foamy and difficult to see, so keep a close eye on it.
Once the butter has turned a nice nutty brown, remove from the heat and pour into a liquid measuring cup to stop the cooking. Give it a stir and add 2-3 tablespoons of cold water to the butter to bring it back up to 1 cup of liquid. Set aside to cool to room temperature. To help speed this process up, you can place in the fridge for 10-15 minutes. You want to make sure the butter is still liquid when you’re adding it to the dough later on, so make sure to remove after 15 minutes.
In a large bowl, add the sugars, vanilla, espresso powder, and cooled brown butter. Cream together with an electric hand mixer until light and fluffy, 1-2 minutes. (If not becoming fluffy, the butter may be too warm. Stick in the fridge for a bit to let it cool off and then try again.) 
Add the egg and yolk and beat until incorporated.
Add the dry ingredients, about ⅓ of the mixture at a time, and beat between additions until just incorporated. It’s okay for there to be a bit of unmixed flour on the edge of bowl, this will be incorporated in the next step. 
Using a wooden spoon, fold the chocolate chips and chunks into the dough
Scoop the cookies onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet in 3-tablespoon-sized mounds. 
For optimal flavor, cover and refrigerate for 1 hour or, even better, overnight. 
Evenly space the dough 3 inches apart from one another on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Bake in a preheated oven for 12-14 minutes. 
Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 2-3 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Enjoy!

Thanks for reading, 
​Anj

It's the end! It's the end of everything. But of course, to be totally cliche, the end of everything is also the beginning of something. For those of you who don't live around Bryn Athyn, and didn't read the title of the post, you may be asking yourselves "The end of what? It's not the end of 2018, we're only about half way through it..." And to that I'd reply- it's the end of the school year. Or we're past the end of the school year now. The seniors have officially graduated and the juniors (aka me) have officially become seniors. 
Scary thought, right? And how exactly did that scary thought become reality? And how did it become reality so soon? The answer to that is that I have no idea. While junior year felt like the slowest possible time ever, looking back it feels like a blur. (Isn't that how life always is, though?) The end of this year just feels like it sort of jumped out from behind a corner and surprised me. I can't believe this year is over, and I most certainly can't believe that I'm a senior. Even writing those words feels wrong. I. Am. A. Senior. That's wrong, that most definitely can't be right. Me? A Senior? Just the other day someone asked me how old I am, and you know how I answered? I said I'm 15. 15. You know how off that is? I haven't been 15 for two years. TWO YEARS. Where did those years go? HOW AM I a SENIOR? 
Excuse my (not) mild freaking out. I am just in total awe and disbelief by the fact that I'm a senior. This really is coming close to the end of my high school career. A year from now I'm probably going to be writing on this blog about how senior year really just flew by and I can't believe I'm off to college. A YEAR FROM NOW I'M GOING TO BE OFF TO COLLEGE. And more importantly to my freaking out brain, this year I have to make some big life choices such as which college I'm going to go to and what I might want to major in. How can I be making these choices when I literally still feel like I'm 15? 
And no, this is not a philosophical post answering that question and all the life questions you've been dying to have answered. I'm just splatting out words on a post because I haven't posted on this blog in a while, and also in a tribute to my senior (now college freshman) friends. 

Here's a quick little word of remembrance (no, they're not dead... I'm just going to see them a whole lot less next year :( ) for my senior friends. 
Caitlin-- thanks for being my partner in crime this year. We did everything together, ranging from tackling defense on field hockey to producing a play and a musical to being the best statistician and statistician's assistant for the wrestling team. (Guess who was the assistant. Hint: It wasn't me.) You're one of my bestest friends, as proven by how well we've gotten to know each other-- we literally know each other's food orders. I'm not sure it gets any more personal than that. Love you so much, and can't wait for the shenanigans we're going to get up to in the months and years to come. 
Rayna-- thanks for being my Broadway buddy. We made some pretty great memories together going to some fantastic shows. I loved having you there to experience the magic of theater with me, despite the fact that people around us start to think we're crazy. Of course, going to Broadway with me isn't the only thing I love you for. I love you for making the field hockey and capes team fun for me this year. Nothing will be the same without your bright, smiling face. 
Ellie-- thanks for being one of my oldest friends. We're so close that we literally finish each other's sentences and thoughts. I can't believe you graduated this year. You're such a talented musician, and I'm so lucky to have you as a friend. You know I'm always down to play you (crush you?) in video games or just to hang out and have oddly deep talks or really random, light discussions about random occurrences. 
Waverly-- thanks for being my lacrosse and musical buddy. You helped me to endure hours upon hours of dry tech and tech, and you made me feel included in the lacrosse team, even though I'm just a statistician. It's a real shame we didn't become friends sooner, because I feel like we really bonded this year and since you're going to college down south next year... Well, it's likely that I'm not going to be seeing you all that much. :( Good luck, though, and I hope you have the best time next year. :) 

And... the Class of 2019 is about to be the top of the school. You hear that underclassman? You have my permission to start running and screaming now, because with my class in charge, I'm sure it's going to be a chaotic year. Of course, hopefully that also means that's it's going to be not just a fun year, but the best year of our entire lives. Look out senior year, because here we come! (and I'm still not so silently screaming about the fact that how are we seniors, what are we going to do, how is this end so near???)
Thanks for reading, 
​Anj

Sorry, I've been very busy with school. Spring of junior year is a rough time. School ends soon and I'll post as soon as possible! ​

Yeah, so sorry, as usual I'm apologizing for not posting enough but this time I have a legit excuse! (which just so happens to be the same excuse I use every time so...) This excuse comes in the form of one, single, torturous word: School. And you can give me a break, right? It's the spring of my junior year so I have AP tests as well as the SAT coming up. That's a lot of stuff to be panicking over. (Which I am, I really, really am).
Another thing other than the mountains of homework that has been keeping me busy is ANC's spring musical-- Shrek. And here's an obviously placed ad for it, because I'm the student producer and gotta try and get as many people to come to the production as possible. Y'all should come to Shrek! It's the closing weekend this weekend-- last two shows! Tomorrow night at 8 PM and Saturday at 7 PM. If the hard work of the cast and crew doesn't instantly draw you to the show, the never ending hard work of the production's top of the line student producers (myself and Caitlin Irwin) should! (haha...) So with that extremely subtle yet totally convincing ad, I'll be seeing you all buying tickets from me at MPAC's box office... right? Hehe. 
No, but seriously, the cast and crew of Shrek have worked so hard these past few months, and I can attest to that! I've been at (most) of the practices and have had the joy of seeing this show come together. It's a great production, and I promise, it'll be worth the $15 for an adult and $12 for a kid that you gotta pay for it. (See what I did there?) It's a family friendly show that will be fun for everyone, ranging from on-the-death-bed old to just came out of the womb infants. Please, come see our show! (also my best friend is starring in it, no big deal or anything...) 
Anyway, that's what I've been up to, sorry I gotta keep it short because there's so much else do!
Thanks for reading, 
​Anj

Oh, also, P.S. another one of my best friends, Ellie Taylor, is having a piano recital at 7PM on Wednesday, May 16th. She's a wonderfully talented pianist and it's not a performance you're going to want to miss! If you're interested make sure you RSVP by May 2 so she knows how many people are coming :) (At the Settlement Music School in Willow Grove-- 318 Davisville Road) 

For those of you living under a rock, Buzzfeed has a social media page called Tasty which posts a ton of drool worthy delectable delights. After hearing a lot of raves online about just how ​absolutely amazing Buzzfeed's chocolate cake was, I decided I absolutely had to test it out. Here is the conclusion I've come to. 
All together, I was not impressed. I made my regular chocolate cake to compare the recipe with, and I'm still a bigger fan of my normal recipe. Here's the thing about Buzzfeed's recipe that nearly drove me crazy and made me tempted to just throw the cake out the window and be done with it. It's unbelievably crumbly, Like it falls apart when you're icing it crumbly. And that drove me ​insane. WHAT IS THE POINT OF A CRUMB COAT WHEN IT JUST PULLS THE ENTIRE CAKE APART? It was impossible to ice. If you look at the sides of the cake, you can see exactly how crumby it got. And that was even after I stuck it in the fridge, then tried to ice over the already falling apart cake, and then I even tried glazing it over which chocolate ganache to smooth the bumps. It didn't help. Presentation-wise I was not impressed. And I think we all know how much I care about my food presentation. (If you don't, feel free to check out my "Food Fancies" pictures over in the gallery. I really like making photograph worthy food.) 
Also making this cake is a lot of work. A lot more than my usual recipe, which was also a downside of the recipe. What all these extra ingredients do is make a very interesting flavor with a ton of depth, which is a perk. The cake's only perk, in my mind. The flavor has depth, which was good. Nothing else in my experience with this recipe was. It wasn't even leagues better than my standard recipe, so no, I don't think I'm going to be switching over anytime soon. Especially since this cake is relatively dry in comparison to my recipe. 
Side note: I followed the instructions exactly as they were given, so I definitely did make the cake intended from the video. 
After having several people taste test both cakes, I've come to the conclusion that the "Ultimate" cake is the inferior chocolate cake. Work wise it was a lot of work to make, especially finding all the extra ingredients. It wasn't something you could just make on a whim (which is how I make a lot of my baked goods) because the ingredients probably aren't things you'll find around the house. It also took a lot of extra work to decorate because of how crumbly the cake was, and it was impossible to make look perfect because the cake basically just fell apart as I iced it. Sorry Buzzfeed, but this definitely isn't a recipe I recommend. It tastes pretty good, but it's nothing great. 
Preparation: 3/10 
Decorating: 0/10 
Taste: 7/10

Want a decadent sauce to create a perfect meal? This homemade blush sauce is sure to a. complete a dish and b. make its excellence sky rocket out of proportions. Both easy to make and delicious to eat. This is most definitely a recipe you want to try if you adore pasta like me. Anyway, here's the recipe: 

Ingredients: 
12 oz. linguine pasta 
2 T. extra-virgin olive oil 
1 large shallot, minced (1/3-1/2 cup) 
1 garlic clove, minced
pinch of red pepper flakes 
14.5 oz can diced tomatoes, undrained & pulsed into a food processor until mostly smooth (about 5 1 second pulses) 
1 1/2 c. half & half 
1/2 tsp. salt 
1/2 tsp sugar 
1/2-3/4 cup Gorgonzola cheese (I recommend 3/4, it really enhances the flavor, even if you don't like the taste of Gorgonzola, it blends perfectly and enhances, doesn't take over the sauce) 
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
freshly ground black pepper to taste 

Instruction: 

1. In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat until oil simmers. Add shallot and sauté, stirring often until shallot is softened, but not browned, around 3-4 minutes. Add garlic and red pepper flakes and sauté until very fragrant, about a minute. Add tomatoes, half & half, salt and sugar. Bring to a simmer, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally until thickened slightly & mostly smoothed out, about 15 minutes. Add Gorgonzola and stir until the cheese melts and is homogenous with the sauce. 

2. While sauce simmers, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add around 1 Tablespoon of salt to the water and add pasta. Cook according to package directions to al dente. Drain and reserve 1 cup past water in case the sauce turns out too thick. 

3. Add linguine to sauce along with the chopped basil. Stir to well-coat pasta the with sauce, adding the reserved pasta cooking water a little at a time if the sauce is too thick. Season with freshly ground black pepper. 

Enjoy! 
​Anji

You know those addicting soft sugar cookies sold at the grocery store? The ones with the swath of colored icing and sprinkles on top? Yeah, well this recipe is just like them, except so much better. Why are they better? Well, they're freshly baked for one. Freshly baked things always taste better. And they have no preservatives and are made with fresh ingredients. They may take longer than just going to Giant and buying box of those delicious cookies, but it's worth it because of how good these  cookies taste. Plus-- they look just like the store bought ones, which is a fun extra tidbit. 
This recipe is great for several reasons-- of course, it tastes good, but it also makes a ton of cookies. So your hard work will pay off because you'll have a gargantuan amount of cookies to feast on when they're done! 

Ingredients: 

Cookies: 

1 cup butter, room temperature 
1 3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs, room temperature
1 tsp vanilla 
1 cup sour cream 
1/4 tsp almond extract
5 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp baking sode
1/2 tsp salt

Frosting: 

3/4 cup butter 
3 1/2 cups powdered sugar 
3-4 T heavy cream 
1 tsp vanilla 
food coloring and sprinkles

Directions:
Cookies:
1.In a large bowl mix together margarine and sugar. Beat until creamy. Add in eggs, vanilla, lemon extract and sour cream and mix together until combined.
2. In a separate bowl mix together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Slowly add dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Mix just until combined.
3. Split dough in two and place in saran wrap. Refrigerate dough for 1-2 hours.
4. Once dough has been chilled roll out dough on a bakers mat or parchment paper. Add another 1/4 – 1/2 cup flour if dough is still sticky. Cut with floured cookie cutter.
5. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-9 minutes until beginning to lightly turn golden on the sides. 
Frosting:
1. Combine all listed ingredients, mix with an electric mixer until smooth. Simply frost cookies by using a knife and sprinkle on some sprinkles. :) 

Hope you all enjoy this recipe as much as I did! Thanks for reading, 
​Anj

For lack of a better title, I'm just going to call this post "December," because I'm going to go over some of the fantastic adventures I went on in the month of... guess it. No, not May, December! (sorry, that was a bad joke.) 
This has been a pretty good month. I mean, half of it was off from school, how could it not be a good month? Actually, I take that back, this has been a FANTASTIC month. 
To start off my wonderful December of 2017, on December 10, Rayna and I took another trip up to the Big Apple. Why? To see a Broadway show of course! It was a fantastic day, if I do say so myself. We got up bright and early (or early for me, a teenager) to travel up, so we'd have plenty of time to walk around New York and get lunch before our 3 o'clock show. We ventured to the Rockefeller Center to see the giant Christmas tree... Which I found to be actually quite ugly. It's not the pretty sort of pine tree, the only thing it really has going for it is its size.  

Then we went to see Kinky Boots. Which, by the way, was fantastic. If you read my last post describing my obsession with musicals, you would know that I already went to see a production of Kinky Boots this year. Yeah. I went to see it twice. Why? Because I love the show, and also the two original leads were back in for a limited run. OF COURSE I had to go and see it. And boy, was the show worth it. Stark Sands and Billy Porter were an absolute wonder. They had the best on-stage chemistry I've ever seen, and an extremely compelling stage presence. Seriously, I couldn't take my eyes away from them, even when they were in the background. Also, their voices... Ah. They have to have been the best performers I've seen yet. I know there's not much time, but if you can get in to see the show before they leave on January 7th, I would HIGHLY recommend it. Seeing those actors is life changing. 

Then on the 16th Serena and I headed to the Talking Teacup (my favorite place), for a long overdue tea date. :) Later that evening my family and I left our house to head to a hotel by the airport. Why? Because we had an early flight the next morning. An early flight to another one of my favorite places-- the tropical paradise also known as Saint Kitts. Getting up early isn't an issue, even for me, when you have a tropical island to look forward to. 
The flight wasn't bad. Even the layover was quick-- barely enough time for Zia and I to get frozen yogurt before we hopped onto another plane in Charleston. Then, finally we landed around 5. Thanks to family friends, instead of going through traditional customs, we went through the Yu Lounge. Meaning that we were picked up in a car, driven to said lounge, and then fed food while our passports were being checked. Seriously, a great beginning to a great trip. 

Just shoutout to those family friends here. They made our trip to Sant Kitts a fantastic one, and also are just great people in general so. Thank you so much! Also thanks to my father for taking us there :). Anyway, that evening we went with our friends to the Salt Plage, which is an outdoor restaurant directly on the water. We would go on to eat at the Salt Plage for several other nights during the trip because of its amazing sunset and quality food. 
Then, the rest of the week was basically a variety of sun time. The for the next two days we went to a private club called the Pavilion and spent the day by the pool. Some unspoken universal law in Saint Kitts seems to be that all pools have to be infinity pools... which is fine by me, haha. 
The Pavilion had to have been my favorite place to go. Because it was a private club (we were able to get in thanks to our friends), it was very calm there, also the staff was extremely friendly and nice. (They even hugged us goodbye when it was our last day!) 

For dinner on our second day we went to the Salt Plage again, but on the the third day we went to the Spice Mill, which had delicious food... though, since it was outdoors and I'm a bug attractor I was quite literally getting swarmed with mosquitoes for a while. (You could see a black cloud of them around my head.) 
Then, on the fourth day instead of going to the Pavilion, we went to the Shipwreck. The Shipwreck is not actually a shipwreck, it's a beach area with a great coral reef and a restaurant called the Shipwreck. There we did several things a. lie in the sun b. swim c. snorkel. It was fun. There were also a ton of cute monkeys running around. (Monkeys are the squirrels of the island. (interesting fact: Saint Kitts has an issue with drunken monkeys aka monkeys who love to steal peoples' drinks and get drunk.)) 

Then, on our third day we went on a Catamaran, which is a giant boat with like nets on the front which you can sit on. That was fun. The crew was entertaining, and we got to stop at a beach in Nevis for a couple hours. We also stopped at a place to snorkel. It was a good day. It was also quite entertaining because the boat had an open bar... And well, since everyone was on vacation they were all quite hammered by the time we got back to the dock. Seriously, I had probably 5 drinks spilled on me (not the entertaining part). There were people who literally could not walk straight, when we were in the vehicle driving us back from the harbor, we saw a guy who literally fell over and was crawling because he couldn't walk. (That's the entertaining part). The very same guy stepped on me and very nearly fell on top of me on the boat (I was very afraid of him falling on me and kept backing up until I was against the side rope, and then I was very afraid he'd fall and I'd go overboard.) 

Our next and last day ( :( ) was spent at the Pavilion, much to my delight. Then we spent our last night at the Salt Plage. And... the next day we left... Well. That's sad. Oh! Just random side note, the Pavilion had these wonderful outdoor showers supplied with soap, shampoo and conditioner. These showers were private, with really cool stonework but open to the sky. 

As depressing as it was to leave Saint Kitts and return home.. Well, I'm still sad about it, but at least I got to spend Christmas in my own house with my lovely kitties. As per our Christmas tradition we went to go see a movie. Originally we planned to go see Star Wars: The Last Jedi, but, well, somehow I promised my cousin/best friend Ivan that I wouldn't see it without him so... We went to go see Jumanji instead. ( I partially agreed to go because I've heard good reviews and partially because the title has my name in it ). Surprisingly enough, I actually really enjoyed the movie-- I was laughing the entire time. 
Then I spent the 26th baking away. I think because I was on a baking fast due to having little free time during the school year I just kind of overdid it a little baking on the 26th. I started around noon, took a three hour break between 5-8 and then started up again until about 3 AM. Yes. I was baking until 3 AM. Like I said, I went a little baking crazy. My arms still ache from icing those freaking snowflake cookies. I don't know why I did it-- I hated doing it last year, and yet... Here I was again, icing a hundred sugar and gingerbread cookies. Joy. I also made a cake, key lime pie and french bread. I didn't get around to making more toffee because, well, it was 3 AM, and I still had to pack because we were leaving the next morning so... Yeah I was really done with baking by 3. 
The next morning we left to go and visit our cousins in the Middle of Nowhere, Maryland. Another Christmas tradition is the Christmas Party held at my Aunt Sharon's and Uncle John's. While I'm not exactly good at socializing during family parties, I do enjoy getting to see my cousins. Like I said before, Ivan is one of my best friends and since we live in different states we don't exactly see each other a lot. 
And now we've caught up to me time-wise. Ivan and I did go to see Star Wars today. And eh... I have to say I was disappointed. It was good, but I'm really disappointed with the way Luke was written into the movie, the tone felt odd at times, as well as some really strange dialog. All together not the perfect movie I was expecting, then again, maybe it's just because my expectations were too high, who knows. 
Anyway, it was a great year and thanks for reading! 
Anj 
P.S. If you're interested in seeing more of my very picturesque trip to Saint Kitts, check it out in my Gallery on this site. :) It will have more details along with plenty more pictures. OH ALSO BIG SHOUTOUT TO MY FATHER FOR TAKING FANTASTIC PICTURES WITH HIS PHONE AND BEING OUR PHOTOGRAPHER (and he was getting really sick of it, too. Love you, father!) 

For those of you who don't know, I'm a bit (more than a bit) obsessed with theater. No, I do not like actually being on stage, due to my condition of stage fright and attention fright in general. I love watching theater. Which, actually makes perfect since seeing as I love stories, and story-telling, which is basically what theater is. (Sorry for any major theater geeks screaming at me somewhere.) Basically, I get really obsessed and attached to shows, mostly musicals. (Ask my dad, he has to listen to them ALL THE TIME.) 
I've always liked theater, but the big obsession started two years ago when I began my career as a Cappies Critic. (Cappies is a high school group that goes around and reviews other high schools' plays. It's actually king do a big thing, with a giant "Tony" awards at the end of the season). Les Mis was the first theater production that I absolutely fell in love with, blasting the music at all times of the day. Then came Rent. Hamilton. Spring Awakening. Something Rotten. Wicked. Kinky Boots... etc. Basically I'm very, very obsessed. 
And when I get obsessed with things, it's not a low-key obsession, it's a grand obsession. Meaning I know basically every detail about the show, story-wise, actor-wise, etc. I know a lot of random facts about my favorite musicals. Like Lin Manuel Miranda wrote the song "Dear Theodosia" on the day he adopted his dog, not when his first child was born. Or that the melody for "Burn" is playing in the background of "Take a Break" to possibly signify an emotional affair? Or that Jonathan Groff and Lea Michelle became best friends after originating Melchior and Wendla in Spring Awakening. OR... You know what? I'll shut up now. I research and study these shows for FUN when I get obsessed. Yeah, that's how weird me and my obsessions are.  (Side note: I also know every word to every song to most of the musicals listed above. Want to badly rap along to Hamilton with me? Give me a call, haha) 
Anyway, back on topic. I love theater. Last year was the 25th Anniversary of Rent, so there was a touring cast going around. I really, really wanted to go, but my dad was busy on all the nearby dates... So I was left to be disappointed having never seen the show. Why am I telling this story? Because my dad knew how much I wanted to see Rent and therefore promised to take me to Broadway this summer. 
This would be my first Broadway show, hopefully the first of many. So when the time came, I chose Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812 to be my first. Why? Because 1. Okieriete Onaodowan (Hercules Mulligan from Hamilton's Original Cast) and Ingrid Michelson were in it, 2. the plot sounded interesting 3. I'd heard good reviews and finally 4. Philippa Soo (Original Eliza in Hamilton) originated the role of Natasha (Yeah, that's how much of a nerd I am.). 
It was a great show that was extremely unique. It interacted with the audience, performing with audience members actually seated on the stage and actually interacting with random audience members as part of the show as well. It was fantastic, and I'm so bitter that it left Broadway so soon. Well, that day trip to Broadway was probably one of the best days of the summer, and I still think of it fondly. (Shoutout to my father for putting up with my theater obsession and taking a day off to actually take me to Broadway. Love you father!) We left early, and got to New York in time to wander around and see the Broadway area, even visiting the Richard Rodger's Theater AKA HAMILTON. Not that I actually saw that show, but even being at the theater was awesome . (Yeah, I'm a nerd. Sorry) The actual theater for The Great Comet was pretty amazing as well. It was built just for the show (as are all Broadway Theaters) and was extremely unique. (See picture below). Before going to the Comet, though, we stopped in a little Italian Restaurant on Times Square and had the best Italian food I'd ever had. Basically what I'm trying to say, and what I've already said is that was a great day. 

The next professional theater show I saw wasn't actually on Broadway. I went to go see the touring cast of Wicked when the came to the Academy of Music this summer with my father and Zia. It was a good show, I was already familiar with Wicked, so I just wanted to actually go see it live. It wasn't the best show for several reasons that had nothing to do with the story. The show itself is great, just circumstance wasn't. First off, I left my glasses at home, which is totally my issue. Then secondly both Glinda and Elphaba were the standbys. Glinda was good, but Elphaba? Her acting was really choppy, like she was just saying the lines, but don't get me wrong, her singing sent shivers down my spine, especially during the iconic song "Defying Gravity." And then there was also a guy listening to the show on headphones like right next to me, and I could hear the electronic-ized voices for the entire time. Still, it was a very good show and I did actually enjoy my time. (sorry! My inner critic is showing.) 
Then the next show came as a bit of a surprise. One of my best friends, Rachael, got two free tickets to Kinky Boots at the Academy of Music. Knowing my love of theater, she invited me along. Of course I accepted, despite the fact the show was on a school night and I also had a field hockey game that day. Basically how that worked was I came home right after the game was over (had to miss watching the JV), and throw on a dress over my sweaty body (sorry, too many details?) before jumping into Rachael's car and racing off to the train station. Then we got to Philly and may or may not have gotten a little lost trying to find the Academy of Music due to malfunctioning GPSes on our phones... Yeah I'll just say this circles and RUNNING DOWN TO TRY AND GET THERE IN TIME. We ended up getting there at about 7:26 when the show started at 7:30. So yay! we made it in time, even if we were sweating and panting in our seats for a bit into the show. 
Kinky Boots was a great show, show's humor is spot on and it's music is so catchy. I added basically the entire album to my ever so long and ever going Musical Favorites playlist. 
That night getting back is actually a bit of an interesting story, too. Being the adept duo that we are, Rachael and I couldn't figure out a way to get back into the train station. See, we got out from the Comcast Building, but it was 11 at night, so that was closed. And then the main entrance to the station was closed due to construction. Basically we were a little worried about being stranded in Philly on a school night, but then we saw a security officer, and asked for a way to get into the station... He proceeded to point about twenty five feet away from us where there was an underground entryway. Whoops. I did say Rachael and I are a very adept pair, didn't I? We got back late, and I was EXTREMELY tired the next day, but for the show it was all worth it. Also just want to say I love Rachael so much, and not just because she took me to a show (but that's a bonus, haha). Rach, if you're reading this, you're the best. 

Alright, because I wanted to go back to Broadway so bad, I talked to my friend who is actually very good on stage, Rayna, about if she'd want to go to New York sometime to see a show. Luckily enough for me, she was very enthusiastic about the idea and soon enough we had a plan to go to not one, but two shows in the oncoming months. The first show we went to see was Cats. I really wanted to see this show because literally it seems like ​everyone talks about it, and seeing as it's leaving Broadway in December, I figured now would be the time to take action. Rayna wanted to see it because she heard it had amazing choreography (which it did!!) Basically, it worked out. 
So a couple weeks ago, Rayna, my dad and I all got up early on a Sunday Morning (November 12, to be exact) to head to New York City for a matinee performance of Cats. It was a fun time, walking through the city, stopping to get lunch and then going to see the show. Cats is an amazing show. Sure, I'll admit I had no idea what the plot was, but the singing, dancing, and set? All of it was so impressive. I wish everyone could go see that show because it'll leave you stunned. 
That Sunday had to be one of the better days of the year, and the most exciting part? WE have another one planned this December. What show are we seeing? Well, I fell so much in love with Kinky Boots that I looked it up and found out that the two original leads are back for a short time. OF COURSE I had to see that, so Rayna and I are going back to New York to see that soon next month. I'm so excited, too, because it's such a fun trip. Hanging out with Rayna is great (Love you, Rayna!), New York is great and going to Broadway is great. All the combined makes the best day ever, so as you might imagine, I'm getting pretty excited for the best day ever part II. 
Anyway, thanks for reading! If you ever need any theater recommendations, I'm your girl. :) 
-Anj

Contrary to popular belief, Charter Day is not, in fact, meant to be a cult holiday. For everyone outside of Bryn Athyn that follows this blog or anyone outside Bryn Athyn period, Charter Day may look a lot like a cult thing (as does most of Bryn Athyn to most outside viewers). I mean, I can see where people are coming from... A ton of people in robes and red sweaters marching down to a cathedral... Well, it's not mean to be cult-like, it's actually just meant to be a celebration of our school being granted a Charter. Hence the name Charter Day. 
Charter Day is basically the homecoming for our school, of course we couldn't actually call it homecoming because we're ANC. It always happens close to the midterm (after 6 weeks), though this year it was a little later, taking place on October 20th. 
The only proper way to kick off Charter Day is with the Charter Day Field Hockey Game under the lights. Yes, that is the only proper way. For anyone who didn't attend... Well, your does your Charter Day even count as a Charter Day? No, I'm not a biased opinion at all. 

Our Charter Day Game was also our senior game. That basically means that we honor all our senior players by the Juniors making them posters, and then they walk up on the field, get flowers and we announce their life plans and whatnot. Anyway, you may be wondering, Anji, why did you creepily post a picture where you are in no way shape or formed involved? To that I reply, well, I wanted to show off my amazing best ever, never going to be topped senior poster. Caitlin is part of our conjugal defense line up, so of course I made her poster. Did I stay up till 1 doing it? Maybe, but it was worth it. (FYI she's  number 1 so that's why the i is a 1) 
(Also side note: why didn't I post a fockey picture we me in it? Well, because I don't have any fockey pics with me in them from Charter Day.) 

Scratch that, here's a picture of me from Charter Day! Yeah, that's me playing my game. Am I 20? Nope. That's me in the background, 22, looking like a dweeb. Hey, what else is new? 
Anyway, for those if you who didn't attend the annual Charter Day Field Hockey Game Under the Lights (*gasp* how could you?), we won! yeah 6-1! I'm proud of my team for that... It was almost a shut out too... Almost. 
Anyway to continue on to the Charter Day festivities, after the amazing game under the lights that you shouldn't miss, we go home and get to sleep in. Well, unless you're a senior, then you gotta go in early the next day... (Oh, dang, that's me next year, isn't it?) Anyway, most of the high school gets to sleep in the next day, and then we go into school in our Charter Day attire and have our march to the Cathedral. Also known to some (possibly) as the cult march. But, like I said before, that's a common mistake to make, despite how it may look, it's not actually a cult. I don't think... I'm technically a part of it so can I really be a proper judge of the cult factor? 

When you're just an awkward blob... 

Anyway here's what we do after our (not) cult march. We sit through a long, arduous chapel service... Oh, sorry I mean an enlightening hour long chapel service (or is it an hour and a half?), we all walk around to the back of the cathedral to sing (not) cult songs. Actually though, the Charter Day songs are really fun to sing. Then it's picture time! (as seen above). Seriously, if you get in front of the big, fancy cameras for Charter Day, there's a good chance of you getting added to all the ANC advertisements. My face got put on a billboard in the mall (along with other people) last year, it was weird. But seriously, I swear they enhanced my acne in that picture, which continually horrifies me because that's in the mall. 

Then, after taking about three-thousand, five bajillion pictures, I left the cathedral to go and get my nails and eyebrows done, and proceeded to spend the rest of the afternoon half getting ready for the dance and half just lazing around. I always hate it when I have plans but nothing to do in-between because I don't want to start anything but then I'm bored, too. Seriously, I took FOREVER to get ready just because I had FOREVER. 

Alright and shoutout to Camille. She's basically just like an older sister to me and I love her so much. She came to stay with us over Charter Day weekend (yay <3), and took time out of her horrendously busy schedule to come home and help me figure out my hair situation. So thanks Camille, I love you. You're the absolute best. 
Anyway, spent a ton of time just getting ready for the dance/ lazing around. This included make-up, hair and scrubbing the shite out of my legs. 
Yeah, you weren't expecting that last bit, were you? Well, if any of you read my blog last year, I get horrible rashes all up and down my shins from my shin guards. Yes, I wear rash guards every single day, but it just can't be prevented apparently. Well, I spent a good half and hour using my sugar scrub (if interested, the recipe is on my blog) to scrub them down. And then I proceeded to use cover up, you know, to cover up those hideous rashes. Not many people contour their legs, eh? 
Then I got picked up by my date at 7. Yeah! I got asked to Charter Day! which is fantastic because a. I really didn't think I would be asked b. all my friends had plans so if I didn't get asked, I probably wouldn't go and I already bought a dress :(. anyway, I got asked so yay! (When people say "asked to Charter DaY" they mean the dance. Not just the day in general). 
It was fun. We got to Rachael's for pictures, despite my horrible directions, and then got to Bernie's for dinner. Then we went to the dance. Yeah, I'm not big fan of dancing, but like... I love dances, so it was worth it. 

Then on Saturday I did an open house and attended a movie night thing (it was on an outdoor projector, freezing but fun) and Sunday I had Cappies training (Ugh) and then Monday I got to sleep in. Yay. Charter Day weekend (there's a whole ton of other events, but I just didn't feel like writing about them, sorry. ) Anyway, thanks for reading! 
​Anj