so for one of my classes, we had to do a review of an item from a supermarket in a way similar to a review of an artist, and i guess i found it kinda fun. my assingment got a good laugh out of my class at least.

anyways, here's the full thing below:

Walking around the frantic aisles of Wegman’s just days before the big ice storm, I come across an end cap with clearance items stocked on it. Like Air Pumpkin Spice flavored “Puffcorn” (not popcorn) was the only item left on the shelf, for just a little over a dollar. Clearly a leftover from the Autunm season that the store was desperately trying to get rid of, I grab one of the packs to take back with me.

The packaging itself boldly claims that it’s “Better Than Popcorn" towards the top of the bag, with several more “benefits” (as one would probably call them) listed on the bottom, such as how it’s only 50 calories a cup, free from artificial ingredients, and how it uses “Non GMO Corn” (but remember, it’s not popcorn). Although this product is gluten free, the way it presents itself feels more for those “health-conscious” people who go on Keto diets and avoid any snack food that isn’t GMO but would never even think to eat a single fruit. The brand name and “benefits” are contained in puffcorn-shaped blobs, and an image of a pumpkin pie is included on the bag not because there’s actually pie in there, but rather to help illustrate the flavor of the product. The font used is simple and delicate, written all in caps.

The back is even more amusing to me, aside from the standard nutrition facts and ingredients list that’s seen on all prepacked food, the packaging also included a giveaway promotion on their Instagram. They do five give aways a day, claiming that they do them “All 365 Days!” They do not clarify if they intend on doing giveaways on the 29th of February during a leap year, so I think it would be nice of them to clarify this on all future packaging.

As of writing this, I have yet to actually taste the product, but the blob of affirming word-vomit on the back assures me that “the melt-in-your-mouth snack will leave you 🙂and reaching for more! *” Let’s see if they can meet that promise.

~~~

I open the bag and immediately my nose is overwhelmed with the warm spices coating the puffcorns. The scent, however, is a lie. Instead of tasting pumpkin spice flavored puffcorns, I instead feel like I’m eating mildly sweet corn puffs that happened to pass by a rack of pumpkin pie. The most prominent flavor I can taste is salt. The one promise that the packaging did meet was the “melt-in-your-mouth” feeling, since the texture and feel was like a softer version of those star-shaped puffs baby snacks. However, despite the flavor not living up to my expectations at all, I still felt drawn to eating it. Perhaps it’s because it’s late at night, I was feeling hungry, and it’s a light snack, but regardless I’ve eaten more of it than I initially thought I would, and I don’t even like it that much.

As much as I want to be disappointed, I bought this for less than it’s normal retail price, so at the very least I feel like I got exactly what I paid for: food that keeps me sated and nothing more.

*the emoji is there because the blurb used a smiley doodle in place of the word ‘smile’

hey. it's been a while, i know

i've been both very busy and lazy. i've been kinda bad with being on my phone, just lazilly doomscrolling hour upon hour. the us (where i live btw, help me!!) just bombed venezuala and kidnapped president for oil because god forbid any of the pedos and their defenders in office are held accountable for their long list of crimes their crimes, so like, that was fun news to wake up to. those four weeks i'm gonna spend abroad in northern ireland are probably gonna be the best time of my forseable future atp.

it hasn't been all doom and gloom for me though. with all the shit that's been going on in the greater world. i've been managing to make some pretty big steps in my life. for starters, i got a new job after my last one ghosted me when winter break began (like god forbid i want to actually focus on my studies). the drive is far from my place, but it's close to my school so at the very least i'll be able to keep it while i'm at school.

as i mentioned when i was ranting above, i'm looking at a study abroad program being offered by my school! it's an arts-based program based in northern ireland where we learn about building community through the arts, something that i'm really excited about!!!

i've also been spending a lot of time with my friends during winter break too. we had a big party/sleepover at my house for new years eve, and it was really fun. i stood up waaaay later than i normally do (3 am) while my friends went to sleep at like 5 :p

i can't say that this will be the case, but i hope i can keep being active on neocities throughout the new year!

Entering the last week of the semester and I only have one assignment left to do. One problem: I just can’t bring myself to actually finish it. I’ve haven’t felt so burnt out over school in a really long time either. Like my brain is just shrouded in this thick, dense fog where no actual thought can enter or leave. Everything just feels harder to do.

We’re entering winter in NY, everything’s cold, it’s hard to leave the warmth of my bed. I’ve been super tired. And this is all so cyclic for me. I feel like once winter hits all my ambition is thrown out of the window. And it really sucks. There are people I meet in school that I want to build stronger relationships with but once it gets cold, I start to hide myself away to do my own little mindless things.

I’ve been hearing that some people who have had COVID have shown cognitive decline (such as here). I got it back in late 2023 (and possibly in February 2020 before it was declared a global pandemic), and to put it harshly, I’ve felt really stupid ever since. Like yes, I already have a learning disability, but I’ve felt like it’s been harder for me to even think of things. I miss feeling smart.

Maybe it’s because I’m burnt out.

Maybe it’s because it’s winter.

Maybe it’s because of that new game I got.

Maybe it’s because I had COVID.

I just want this semester to be over, man.