HOCO

this was a very memorable homecoming, to say the least.
it began about a week before the actual dance, i was in student council class prepping for the busy week of
homecoming festivities when i was instructed to turn around and close my eyes.
 naturally, i did neither. because, i mean, that just sounds shadyyyyyyy..
but they proceeded to place a metallic paper crown on my head and announce to the class that i was on homecoming royalty! wooooohooooo! my life just gained meaning!!!
at the royalty meeting after school, i had to choose what embarrassing game to do in front of the enitre student body at the assembly. i had the choice of a food eating contest, a wiggle cart relay and a lip sync battle.
but you alllllready know what i chose...
LIP SYNCING HECK YAHHHHHHH.

come the day of the assembly, me and my girl makayla, who was also on royalty had prepared a fully choreographed lip sync complete with snippets of 4 different songs and styrafoam mannequin heads (see picture).

yes, it was hilarious.

after the lip sync we were supposed to put on our fancy dancy dress and then walk, spotlighted, down the isle of the auditorium arm in arm with our assigned escort while classical music played in the background.
that all sounds very disney-channely and beautiful right? right.
too bad i am a noob with a knack for embarrassing myself. *rolls eyes @ myself*

me and my escort (hunter holt) were supposed to be the first couple to be announced, but when they announced our names, hunter was no where to be found. so i started strutting down that isle all by my dang self... but then they didn't put the spotlight on me and so i thought i was going at the wrong time  soooo i stopped half way down and ran back. lololol. i decided just to wait for hunter and then we would both walk late together.
sounds like a good idea? right? nope.
because i look up at the stage and
THE BOI IS ALREADY UP THERE.
he had gone the backstage route.
so then i walk down the isle by myself for the SECOND TIME.
it's fine, i didn't need an escort anyways, i didn't even trip in my 1 inch heels!! FEMINISM.

me and my (almost) escort

ok, fast forward to friday night.
friday night was our homecoming football game and it was when they were going to announce the king and queen. the royalty got in fancy cars and paraded around the track then after the king and queen were announced, they got in a fancy fire truck and took one more victory lap around the track waving to the adoring peasants of their kingdom... at least that's how i imagine it went because I DIDN'T GO.
i was hired to film a wedding so i didn't go, whoops.
so, i had my little sister anna stand in for me
my parents were out of town so my friend dallin bleak escorted her along with my cousin (who they announced as my mother lol) mary kate.
right before they announced who the queen, dallin asked my little sister what she would do if she was crowed queen, she appropriately answered "probably pee my pants" to which the announcer responded
"and this years 2016 homecoming queen is KATIE POWELLLLL"
luckily for me, she did not pee her pants, because she was wearing my homecoming dress, and i mean, i kinda needed that in decent condition lolol.

that very moment i was 9302 miles away in toquerville at a beautiful venue filming a beautiful wedding, and my phone blew up like it never has before. to be honest, at first i thought my friends were playing a giant prank on me, but then someone sent me a picture of my little sister on the firetruck with the king and i about peed my pants laughing.
and yes, i was just as surprised as you are.

you think my embarrassing experiences are over? well you're wrong.
come saturday night, the king and queen are supposed to have the "first dance" together to the theme song while everyone watches... but when they announced that it was time for that particular dance, the king was no where to be found. so, i awkwardly stood there and slow danced with myself while everyone watched. awesome. once again, FEMINISM.

here are our homecoming pictures... captured and edited by yours truly<3
(except for the ones i'm in, of course, shoutout to conner's dad for those)

to sum up the week, i am an embarrassment.
but also, life is sooo funny. sooo good.

cyaaaa,
queen katie.

RIP KONNY

this is konny. 

we met on christmas almost two years ago.

since the moment i saw her, we have been inseparable. we have traveled the world together, from scotland to london all the way to fiji. we've climbed mountains together, watched hundreds of sunsets, captured tender moments and endured awkward photoshoots. i have spent more time with her than any friend i've ever had. our connection goes way beyond her super convenient wifi feature... not to mention, i could never repay her for all the amazing opportunities she has provided me with. 

unfortunately, two years of living the lifestyle of katie jane powell was just too much for her to handle and she is out of commission. 

it's ok konny, i understand, i would break too if i had to take so many pictures of katie powell. thank you for not breaking down on me in the middle of the wedding i have tomorrow. 

thanks for all the good times, RIP. <3

SUMMER '16

summer has a way of running through our fingers without us even noticing. one moment we're impatiently packing for our summer adventures, and the next we're scrolling through pictures wishing it could have lasted forever. 

it's a ruthless cycle, and we've all experienced it.

so when this summer came around, the summer of 2016, i was ready. i knew it would go by fast, summers always do, but this was a summer that i wanted to make last... it was my last summer with life as i knew it.. next summer half of my friends will be leaving on missions, some to college, and the rest heaven only knows where. 

i couldn't stop thinking about how i wished time would just slowwwww dowwww.

so, i decided to take matters into my own hands and slow it down myself :

SUMMER '16 from katie powell on Vimeo.  when i first started editing this video i was using all these pretty cinematographic shots from my summer travels, but then i realized that that's not how i want to remember my summer at all, because when it really comes down to it, it's not what you did, it's who you did it with. so here's to all the people that made the summer of 2016 the best one yet. i love you people.

katie jane powell

back 2 skewl survival

alright friends, we are entering that terrible terrible stage of summer withdrawals... well, at least i am. the first few weeks of school are fun because you get to see your old friends and sign disclosures and whatnot, and it's all good fun. 

but now... now.... NOW REALITY IS SETTING IN!

THIS IS OUR LIFE NOW!!

okay, no need to be dramatic, i think you get my point. people are starting to crack under the pressure of being responsible, myself included. but when times like these come, there is only one cure for our angst.

MUSIC, DUH.

here i have provided you with the songs that i turn to when "finding x" just isn't working for me or when i don't feel like reading the great gatsby because the book doesn't a dope soundtrack like the movie. (sidenote: the soundtrack to this movie is pure gold)

without further ado.... (the ones with ** are the best, jus sayin)

claire de lune - claude debussy*****

17 - youth lagoon***

wake me up - ed sheeran

come mess me up - cub sport*

big jet plane - angus & julia stone

fidelity - regina spektor

the hurry and the harm - city and colour**

little wonders - rob thomas

bittersweet - archis**

sort of - ingrid michealson

not about angels - birdy

i had a very hard time not putting stars on all of these, just so you know. also, you should follow me on spotify (ktpowel) because stalking people's playlists and listening to their music is actually a literal hobby of mine. you can learn sooooo much about a person by the music they listen to!!

anyways, happy listening, or not, either way you're still cool for reading this sentence.

cya

kjp

CONCUSSED

when i posted this picture on twitter and captioned it "perfect way to start my senior year" i was being completely sarcastic, but after thinking about it for a little bit (and by a little bit i mean a week of just me and my thoughts in a dark room, so actually A LOT) i decided that this experience really truly was the perfect way to start my senior year. you might think i'm crazy (blame it on the concussion).
but first, let me explain.

it was a perfect day, it usually is when bad things happen.
 i had gone camping at the lake with my family the night before, we spent the morning paddle boarding cliff jumping and hunting for crawdads. i came home, started making a video for student council, and then, still in my swimsuit, headed to a back-to-school swim party at my friend mariah's house.
like i said, it was an ironically perfect day.
i spent time with everyone i love and did everything i love to do.

the pool party was like any other you've been to, in the best way of course.
her dad cooked burgers, the boys threw us in, we played hands up stands up, made trains down the slide, ate more food, talked, laughed.. you know how it goes.

the night was winding down and i got out of the pool to dry.
i sat on a boulder next to my lovely friend gracie and we watched as our friends lined up and sat down in the slide, stopping the flow of the water. they all looked so cute and happy in a row like that, so naturally and me and gracie started talking about how blessed we felt to have such good friends.
as we talked the people on the slide started to sit up on the edges, making a tunnel underneath their bodies. seeing that the slide was no longer clogged with teenagers, i decided to seize the opportunity and go down it one last time.

but this is where it all gets fuzzy,
or black, rather.

apparently when i went down the slide i hit my head pretty hard making an awesome gash and knocking me out cold for about 3 minutes.

i remember someone saying
 "is she faking it?"
then someone yelling
"no, this is real!!"
and i remember wondering who they were talking about, like i was just a fly on the wall or something.

more black.

i was at the bottom of the slide, but not in the water.
mariah's dad's voice was over me asking me if i could open my eyes,
i could, but it took a real conscious effort.

as soon as i realized what was going on, my first reaction was to play it off like you would when you get injured in front of your friends: play it off, don't cry, laugh about it, you know the drill.
literally, the first thing i said when i sat up was "i''m such a noooob!"
but my head really really hurt and i couldn't see except for a tiny hole in my vision and as soon as i took my first wobbly step off of the slide my whole "yeah i'm fine" visage ended.

i noticed how funny my messed up vision made my hands look and started laughing, and then i realized that that wasn't normal and i started crying. and hence, the cycle began.

the next hour i don't remember all that well, but from what my friends tell me it was pretty hilarious.
i couldn't think straight, let alone talk straight.
i basically just laid in mariah's bed and bled everywhere while anything and everything spilled out of my mouth. watching videos, i sound like i had just gotten my wisdom teeth removed or something.
i was laughing then crying then laughing then singing then crying again.
but the sad thing is, i wasn't on drugs, it was my actual brain failing to function.
i don't remember a lot of what i said, but i remember what it felt like. my left arm was numb. i remember opening my eyes, but only being able to fit a single face in my field of vision, everything else was black. i remember i was so mad at myself for not being able to control what i said and i remember trying really hard to act "normal,"but somehow everything i said just made my friends laugh.

when my dad came to pick me up he decided to take me to the ER to make sure everything was okay because at that point the only thing that was coming out of my mouth was pure gibberish.
most of what i remember about the hospital is a gnarly headache, but apparently i got a cat scan, a few staples, then they pumped me full of morphine and sent me on my way.
it was a good time, really.

the rest of the week was spent on what my mom referred to as "brain rest" but what felt like "house arrest." there is only so much you can do in a dark bedroom when you're not allowed to look at screens. i painted, did puzzles, wrote in my journal, and took naps in-between everything i did. which, minus the awesome constant headache, actually isn't a bad way to live.

but mostly what i did this week was think. a lot.
i thought about what happened and why it happened and why it happened when it did.
because let's be real, who wants to start out their senior year with a brain injury??
but like i said, i decided that this experience was the perfect way to start my senior year.
why?
because there is much more to this experience than meets the eye.
although i am not comfortable sharing most of what happened on the world wide web, i would just like to point out that even though i went down a waterslide, i didn't end up in the water. sliding into the water would have been disastrous or even fatal, as i was completely unconscious. that may seem like a lucky coincidence to some people, but to me it is nothing less than a miracle. guardian angels where there that night. this experience was a perfectly timed reminder for both me and my friends that we are here for a reason
trust in God, and trust in his plan

(i am the emotional burrito in the middle)

this experience was also a reminder that i have the most amazing friends in the entire world. they have been there for me since the second i hit my head. they literally gathered around the bed when i was delirious and just sat with me. hahaha and i thought my friend kayden was harry styles so apparently all my guy friends pretended to be one direction and sang "night changes" to me.. who does that?! i love them. they are all such genuinely good people, every last one of them.

anyway, so that is why this was a perfect way to start my senior year.
it was a much needed reminder that my friends have my back and that most importantly,
 God has my back.

much love,
katie jane powell.

JUNIOR YEAR 101

i would like to preface this post by informing you that my junior year of high school literally gave me an ulcer. two of them, actually. i could show you a picture, but personally, i thought this nice sunset looked much better than the inside of my stomach.

when it really comes down to it, all i can really do is tell you to BRACE YOSELF because junior year is insane, and girls are insane, and teachers are insane, and boys are just hot haha. anyway. where was i?
oh yeah. junior year is really really hard, but you already knew that. i'm not here to encourage you to drop out of high school, because then your mom would hate me and we don't want that.
 i'm here to help a sister out. and maybe a brother too if boys are into things like reading blogs, idk.
 as a survivor of the "hardest year of high school", i believe it is my duty to prepare the next generation.  listed below is everything i learned throughout my junior year, not like the quadratic formula and essay format type of intellectual learning though, because i mean who even uses that in real life amiright? i had to go to an entire year of school to learn these things and all you have to do is read a blog post.
you're welcome.***

JUNIOR YEAR 101:

TIP #1
remove all flowers and jewelry when going to school dances!!
they will not make it out alive. you might not even make it out alive.
every corsage i have worn into dances have come out with no petals, and every time i've worn a necklace it has been reduced to pieces. maybe i just go too hard. whoops
(for tips and tricks on how to survive school dances see my post how to survive a mosh pit)

TIP #2
accept now that disney lied to you, i know, the truth hurts.
but high school will never ever be anything like high school musical. although, i did make a high school musical lip sync for my student council campaign, so i mean, it's a start, right?

TIP #3
learn how to forge your mom's signature! this is a very important life skill that most people mastered in middle school, but if not, now is the time. unless of course you want to plague your mom with unnecessary permission slips, you little rascal.

TIP #4
be prepared!!!
always have a pencil, a tampon, and maybe a knife for good measure.
orrrr just be friends with people who are always prepared, either way.

TIP #5
don't hang out with people that make you feel like a peasant!!
there are sooooo many cool people in the world and you would be surprised about how easy it is to become friends with some people. don't waste your time and energy on people who make you feel like trash when you could be hanging with some truuuuuu homies.

TIP #6
let me tell you something you already know, the world ain't all sunshine and rainbows. it is a mean and nasty place and it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it.
always remember that just because it hasn't happened to you doesn't mean it doesn't exist. sexual abuse is a real thing. depression is a real thing. bullying is a real thing. be empathetic, you never know what someone else could be going through.
also if you got my movie quote, i love you.

TIP #7
never ever EVER eat a costco pack of ravioli and 5 double chocolate chip cookies before a spin class. i'll spare you the aftermath, just don't do it.

TIP #8
junior year taught me not to trust so easily.
if you are ever in a situation where you are debating about telling someone something DON'T TELL THEM, the fact that you're questioning yourself is already a red flag.
some people really care, but most are just curious.

TIP #9
"self-doubt is creativity's worst enemy"
like most humans my head is always booming with ideas, but i never take action because i'm scared what my friends think. but life is too short for that shiz. so make a short film, do chior, ride a horse, date a boy!! you do you, boo!!

TIP #10
junior year taught me that its ok to let go. not give up, but let go. one sided friendships or relationships just don't work, so it's ok to move on and let yourself be happy

TIP #11
dont fart on candles.
i have no experiences related to this advice at all. just don't k?

TIP #12
YOU WILL MAKE MORE FRIENDS BY LISTENING THEN YOU EVER WILL BY TALKING.
read that again.

TIP #13
if you want to run for student council, start preparing now
make you posters now.
make your video now.
write your essay now.
otherwise, you will have to sell your soul to the administration for 2 weeks and that is no bueno.

TIP #14
keep the girl code!! i repeat, keep the girl code!!
this one is cut and dry. just keep the girl code. pls. pls pls.
 this one really separates the friends from the bffs. if you really care about your friends, respect their feelings!!

TIP #15
don't spill milk in your car
you may be familiar with a little saying that goes something like "don't cry over spilled milk" well. i give you complete permission to cry if you spilled milk in your car in the heat of st. george and your car smells like something died in it no matter how many times you clean it. then yes, it's ok to cry over spilled milk, thank you very much.

TIP #16
hahahahahadon'tdateinsideyourfriendgrouphahahah
because then when you say "we can still be friends!" you actually have to still be friends because you see them literally every day.
take it from me, it's rough stuff kids.

TIP #17
its ok to be sad when bad stuff happens
i have a bad habit of telling myself: it's fine, get over it, just smile it off, ect. but that's not healthy at all! be sad for a minute. mourn your losses. talk to a close friends. then use what you learned to make you stronger. as my girl mariah told me once on a bad day .."its okay to not be okay."

TIP #18
that being said, don't let your bad days be dominoes!!
what i mean by that is, don't let bad days become bad weeks and then bad months and bad years. even though some days you just can't stop singing "my life is a joooke" to the tune of that primary song "my life is a gift" (oh wait that's just me) and other days you seriously consider changing your bio to "i am a noob"... don't let those rough days get to you. get a slushy, and then shake it off.

TIP #19
don't hate your body
it's the only one you've got!we all have flaws, so don't be so mean to that reoccurring zit on your forehead, because it will probably spend more time with you in high school then any boy ever will.

TIP #20
take care of yourself
you can't make other people happy if you live in a hole and work 24/7. give yourself a break. pls.

TIP #21
check the weather before you wash your car!! the worst thing ever is pulling out of the car wash and into a rain storm. not that i've done that before heh... multiple times...

TIP #22
wear what you want.
people are going to judge you no matter what you do, it's the sad truth. if you wear converse then you're basic and if you wear shoes from random european websites you're weird so i mean, you might as well just wear whichever shoes are comfier! priorities!

TIP #23
make friends outside your "clique"!!
you are limiting yourself by only hanging out with the same people, branching out might be scary at first, but i promise you it's worth it. there are so many cool people!!!  i can't even imagine how different my life would be if i didn't ask dylan mckeighan to be partners with me that first week in filmaking. shoutout to you, boi.

TIP #24
don't buy fake blood from girls named fifi, especially if it is oddly sticky, smells disgusting and is in a gatorade bottle.
even if you think it would make your next short film really dope, don't do it, just stick to ketchup, kids.

TIP #25
get involved!
it doesn't matter if that means you join the cross country team or the ping pong club (which actually isn't a thing but i think it should be a thing, who's with me?!) high school is 10x more fun if you are involved.

TIP #26
date senior boys. because if you don't then you'll be at graduation in may and they announcer will be saying all of your secret crushes names and you will cry because it is too late and you missed your chance. although, i am reluctant to share this killer tip because a bunch of saucy underclassmen have already started to swarm the males of my friend group. smh.

TIP #27
don't do drugs.
hahahahah you think i'm joking but i swear to you it messes people uuuuup! as appealing as being a vape god sounds, i promise you that your brain cells are worth it.

TIP #28
breeeathe.
if you don't get the grade you wanted, it sucks, but i promise you losing your 4.0 isn't the end of the world!!
 (unless you have asian parents, then that could be a serious problem)

TIP #29
how do i say this??
don't be a hoe. i mean this in the nicest way possible!
 i promise you, it's a waste of time and energy and emotions and most importantly, chapstick.

TIP #30
make the most of social media!
i swear to you that commenting on someone's instagram or retweeting someone's selfie is one of the fastest way to make friends. everyone likes to be told "omg how" and "i can't even" even though none of are quite sure how those are even compliments. the 21st century, man, it's a crazy time.

TIP #31
don't park in my parking spot!
 i have a window marker and i'm not afraid to use it.

TIP #32
CARPE DIEM!!!!!! SEIZE THE DAY!!! MAKE THE MOST OF HIGH SCHOOL!!!
cheer really loud at football games and hang out with new people and ask people to school dances and go to tiki too much and play some sports and HAVE A GOOD TIME!!
 because junior year is the last year before the last year.

i love you all, and good luck out there. hmu if you need some more borderline applicable advice or maybe just a hug, because i offer both for no charge.

god speed my juniors,
a senior.

***verify with the counseling office that you read this post and they will let you skip junior year because you already learned everything!!

sierra & jay

this is sierra and jay and they love each other, like a lot. it's pretty cute. so don't mind me if i just live vicariously through their love for the time being. a girl has gotta do what a girl has got to do.

slide into my DMs or shoot me a text if you want to have a video made of you and your lover. 

it'd be fun i promise!

SIERRA & JAY // first look from katie powell on Vimeo. also that song is dreamy.  (it took me a long time to think of an adjective to describe this song so don't judge me too harshly for using "dreamy" it's the best i can do at 2am. i'm really trying to soak in these last few summer nights, if you can't tell.) goodnight katie jane