Ed Sheeran: My Favorite Ginger.
I had a really good one-week summer vacation. I did the whole summer semester thing so I could hurry up and get my degree thus my summer break was relegated to a one-week cruise and Ed Sheeran to end the bittersweet season.
Let me tell you, after waiting for about 6-7 hours to go see Ed at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas my mind could only formulate a single conclusion: My. Life. Has. Been. Made. I finally got to see my favorite artist of all-time (proudly stating that fact!) and I was at a pretty decent spot so yes, life’s good.
Valentine’s Day went by faster than the sold out displays at Pandora. Although it was fun to over-indulge in chocolate and see instagram photos of your friends who actually have a valentine (living vicariously through them!), it also gave me a rather clear picture of why being single is a great thing. Also, my family left for a weekend road trip and since I had Friday class I couldn’t go with them, when my brother came home on Monday he immediately asked about his turtle which my dad placed outside the day they left. I just stared at my brother and said, “What turtle?” the horror on his face snapped me back to reality. I forgot we had a turtle and it’s been outside for 3 days in the winter! Don’t worry though, it’s still alive. My point basically is I didn’t even remember my brother had a turtle much less took care of it, how can I remember anything to do with a man when sometimes I don’t even notice the change in months? So the next time you want a gigantic teddy bear, remember the one best thing about being single:
You see love for what it really is.
Here’s the thing about being single: you see everything. Every PDA couples have in the student union, every small argument you hear in the library and even their regular talks on the way to class. You’re not absorbed in your own love affair so there’s really no distracting you from being observant. You analyze people and their interactions and question the happiness level of what must be the hundredth couple you pass by being all stereotypically nauseating. Don’t get me wrong, I believe that there are couples who really understand each other on a deeper level; those who have everything figured out between them and reach the level of real love. But when you’re waiting in line at Starbucks having to watch the couple in front of you discuss who’s cuter or who loves who more after celebrating their 3rd week anniversary, you question what motivates people to even go out and date. Is it a social requirement to have someone constantly manhandling you now? Yeah sure, lust makes your relationship exciting but when being with one person constantly fizzles that out what do you have left? I think respect, understanding and the ability to be independent is the foundation of a great love but how can you find one with someone else if you haven’t found it within yourself? To see love for what it really is, you have to see yourself for whatever your purpose is. A significant other can’t find yourself for you.
And if any of you are wondering, yes this is my single appreciation post.
Kanye, Lindsay Lohan, And More Candidly Discuss Hollywood Fame And Failure In Incredible ‘City Of Angels’ Music Video
I Will Not Apologize For My Unconventional Taste in Books
I read chick-lit and romantic comedies religiously, and I have finally accepted that my taste in books ranges at a very short distance. I’ve had my taste of Tolstoy, Machiavelli and even Willa Cather, but I just find them a bore. My excuse is to each this own, and it’s as simple as that. My passion belongs to the heart-squirming novellas of Jamie McGuire, Stephanie Perkins and Nichole Chase. In high school this was normal. A 16-year-old lagging around a copy of Lola and the Boy Next Door was expected. It was when I sat down in my first lecture of World Literature during my sophomore year of college that I realized having a strong preference for teen novels is not very alluring in the world of academia.
I’m no English major, which is a good thing knowing that I easily get bored with the classics, but intellectual snobs in this day age are unavoidable. I do wish that I had a better interest in reading the JAMA and the Lancet. I really do want to finish the copy of The Scientific American that’s just collecting dust at the far end of my desk. In time, I will get all that work done but it’ll be done out of my own free-will and not because I was pressured to do so by those in my field. I will not yield to the intellectual snobbery that comes with finding out about my “pre-mature” preference of the written word coupled with the fact that I’m in pre-medicine. My love for girly teen novels has nothing to do with my interest in science. I do not want to become a cardiac surgeon because I want to “fix a broken heartache from the boy next door”. That sounds absurd and is sadly the favorite punch line of most intellectual snobs. I have my interests and have been quiet about them for a long amount of time. But I don’t see the point of doing so anymore. I’m a college student well aware of what science and classic literature is and will no doubt pursue a medical degree. But I’m also a huge fan of Suddenly Royal, Beautiful Disaster, Anna and the French Kiss and so many more. I may have an unconventional taste in books, but I cannot and will not apologize for it.
5 Things I’ve Learned From My Freshman Year of College
5. You can finally mind your own business because nobody cares about your business.
This realization hit me my first week of class. I was placed in a whole new setting where everyone’s just doing their own thing and not minding others around them. High school was mostly about that, whether you went to a huge public school or pretty modest private school, everyone was up in everyone’s business. In high school, you knew a girl who knew a girl who has a cousin who got kicked out for whatever reason or that the person sitting at the back of the room’s name is Rosie and that she has the loudest giggle in class. In college, you probably won’t know the name of the person sitting next to you in your intro classes – of about 300 people – and you definitely wouldn’t care about their giggle. You just wanna get in and get out of class with as information about the lecture as possible. Socializing is reserved for hipster nights at the local cafe, frat parties on greek row or study groups in the library. I’m pretty thankful that this is how the situation was in college; four years surrounded by affluent school girls and traditional teachers can take it’s toll on your private life.
4. There will a a load of cute guys (and girls) everywhere. Do not get distracted!
Literally, eye-candy is found everywhere! College is a big step up from hormone-crazy high school. Everyone is not as awkward and everyone is a bit more confident doing their own thing. Case in point, it makes people appear way more attractive. If said cute guy decides to sit beside you in Psych 101, please don’t spend the entire semester ogling him. Ask him out or something! If you’re not about that life, just don’t appear like an awkward stalker. As for high school sweethearts, good luck keeping them!
3. Parties must be kept to minimum to maintain a fairly decent GPA.
You’re in college, you’re free, woohoo! Time to party! Classes? Psh, I’ll ace ’em all! NO. Noooo. It’s not a domino effect. It’s a seesaw. One goes up while the other goes down; you just have to make a clear distinction of which. My advice for you is to not go out ever single night and drown yourself in alcohol or even dance the night away. Good grades and a great social life only happen in movies or books. It’s a myth and for some people a lifelong dream. (which i absolutely have no idea why) I spent a bulk of my freshman year focusing on the actual work I needed to get done; I’ve already had a bad experience with my chemistry grade dipping back in high school and I definitely do not want that to happen in college. You can’t fake a good paper, and you definitely can not cram for midterms or finals. Do what you have to do to stay in school and graduate. Have some fun if you will… just not ever night of the week.
2. Stop spending and start saving! Plus it helps with the Freshman 15.
Junk food is cheap, soda is cheap and everything else that’s considered garbage for your body (or mind) is cheap. Do not give in to the temptation of having chips for breakfast everyday, a diet coke and McDonald’s for lunch and a dose of ramen every night. Junk will not get you through the semester without having to spend on ten new pairs of jeans. Believe me, I am all about the ramen.. but you gotta start eating something healthy. Get a huge bag of salad maybe? Munch on an apple? Stop refilling your Diet Coke. It will help you down the line. Also, if you start taking notice of where your money is going maybe you won’t be in huge debt by the time your undergrad is over. The little things add up and someday you’re gonna be thinking about all the things you wasted your money on and how you could have invested it elsewhere.
1. Make friends, get involved and enjoy your freshman year.
You start new. So go make a ton of friends and filter them out along the way. I know it sounds condescending, but it’s true. You’ll meet a ton of people that you’re gonna get along with but those who will really make a mark on your life will only be a selected few. Which is a good thing; you wouldn’t wanna be stuck in a crowd full of people who don’t really know you for the next four years. You wanna be surrounded by lifelong friends who’ll remember specific moments of happiness with you. Choose your friends wisely! Personally, I wish I was more involved my freshman year. I didn’t participate in a lot of things, which can be a bad thing since it’ll lead me to be stagnant. If you find your niche and you get involved with organizations that kind of fuel that, you’ll be placed in an environment where you can grow and connect with people who might be your coworkers or colleagues one day. It’s a great resource for future employment and overall a great way to socialize. (The sobriety and substantial conversations are big factors) Lastly, enjoy your first year. It’s filled with intro classes so if you just learn how to manage your time and stay on top of everything, you’re gonna be able to fill your freshman year with memories and great adventures.
(messing around with the Paper by 53 app..haha)
Good Luck and Godspeed.
Cancelled Show #4: Terra Nova
The future + time travel + dinosaurs + Dean Geyer = fictional heaven. Terra Nova was such an amazing production and I’m still reeling from it’s cancellation. I loved the entire story line and was amazed by the medical advances (invasive no more) happening in the future that they are using in the past. I know it’s a tad confusing and maybe that’s why the show was cancelled but if you’ve kept up from episode 1 then you’ll understand my fandom.
Basically, the show revolves around a family set in the distant future and they’re living in a dying world. The mother gets an opportunity to relocate her family to a million (billion?) years to the past in the set up colony of Terra Nova. There they start a new life and transition to a new world where dinosaurs exist! You actually have to watch it to understand it’s intricate story life and strong characters. My favorite of which are Maddy Shannon and Mark Reynolds. And okay, I admit that their specific story line is what got me hooked.
So instead of wallowing in my sadness of yet another great show being cancelled, I encourage you guys to check it out for yourself! Season 1 left of with kind of a happy ending so you won’t be all too disappointed for it to be gone. It’s on Netflix, just so you know.
Control & Careers
So I joined this Biomedical summer program at my college for the summer and I’ve really been enjoying it. It’s only been my second week but I feel like science is where I belong. Yes I actually enjoy running gels (DNA is fun!) and dissecting a fetal pig, but this career is way more than what I’ve expected it to be. I’m only experiencing a tiny part of what I wanna do for the rest of my life – that is to go into medicine – and it’s already taken up so much of my time and effort. What I’m trying to get at is that at some point in you’re life you’re going to have to make hard choices, and more often than not you’ll have to let go of something you’ve held onto for a very long time.
I look at my professors and I see competent, intelligent and adventurous people. I’m guessing most of them are single, so I have a pretty good idea of their commitment towards the sciences. This leads me to ask myself: am I willing to sacrifice time, energy and, yes, some of my wants to have the career that I’m aiming for? I didn’t even need a second to think about it; I was probably born to have a Type A personality. I want that medical career and the fulfillment that (hopefully will) come with it. But I also know that I have to put in double the time and double the effort for things to even be on the same path I want it to go on.
As this realization kicks in, I have to give myself multiple reality checks. Things won’t always go the way they’re planned, and it may even go haywire in the process. Be. Prepared. For. The. Worst. (I have got to start listing down my daily mantras, they’re piling up!) Okay, so I know most people already have this kind of mindset-slash-expectations, but there are (and I am positive there are) people who focus too much, give up too much and fail drastically. Reality is unsettling but it can also be reformed or even fixed. I have one simple approach to this situation: make sure you have plan A to Z. As sad as that sounds, that really is my approach so I hope it helps!
Sometimes It’s Okay to Avoid Failure
I used to think that people were special because they have experienced so much in their life. I thought that intense love – real love- the kind that would be difficult to forget only happened because of a previous heartbreak. I used to think that tough people had that kind of strong attitude because they’ve dealt with a very hard life. And of course, I use to think that extreme failure was inevitable to be on top. I mean, look at all the successful people: Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg,Walt Disney. I’m sure you can think of a whole lot more at the top of your head. In one way or another these folks had to go through betrayal, lies, rejection and some form of intense failure. In the end, they all came out on top and stronger than ever.
What bothers me though is the excuses people make every day in light of this. They expect to be the next Albert Einstein or Thomas Edison despite of their inability to process what they have to do. They expect to be given a reward for failing, but they easily forget to get back up. That’s where their expectations remain stagnant as expectations. The reality is you don’t have to fail first before you succeed. We have countless icons who rose to prominence not because they failed one way or another but because they fought hard from a difficult starting point. It’s not the rejection or the failure that gets you places… it’s the ability to persevere despite such.
Some people, myself included, are wary of certain risks that may lead to bad circumstances. I’m guilty of burying myself in work and books because I’m too afraid that Mr. Right is really Mr. Wrong who is just really good with words. That, my friends, never came from heartbreak but from mere observation. I’m afraid of applying to a lot of top-notch medical schools because my determination to prevent rejection overrides my fear of it. I would rather avoid talking to people I know I’m gonna get into a heated argument with because I can’t stand the thought of losing through undermined silence. I was in the debate team back in high school, yeah, but those things were justifiable since it depended on skill and facts. Situations like a debate competition reassured me that I wouldn’t lose because of my lack of character but because I did not do enough research. But even then I hated losing and avoided every chance of it.
It’s easy to point out that my lack of a whirlwind love life or fear of failure made me kind of judgmental on those who find it difficult to get back up after a low blow. It also made me ignorant on life in general, and that’s why I had to do something about it. I may still be on a forever-single-and-happy crusade, but I’m beginning to understand the concept of why people need each other or want it each other even. Although I almost had a panic attack in my English class for receiving 2 (or 3) consecutive C’s that could permanently damage my GPA, I learned to get a grip. I also learned to suck it up after totally miscalculating the dates of my Political Science final (apparently it was on Tuesday the 7th and not the 14th) and just answered it with what I knew. Panicking, as I’ve learned, does nothing and so does turning your back on a weird adventure or trying to prevent one of life’s multifaceted challenges. It’s all inevitable and strength comes slowly whether you expect it or not. It just comes.
One thing that I’ve learned or somewhat realized is that I don’t need to start from deep within the bottom so I could climb to the top with the kind of strength only gained from a life-changing experience. I can build my strength from career goals or mundane things like a near-below average GPA or going on a date with a guy who thinks Luxembourg is a brand of chocolate and just having an awful time. Nothing big or disastrous. It may be these little obnoxious things that people roll their eyes at, but one way or another these things are an incentive to do better and find better things. Improve. Transcend. And inspire. So maybe you don’t need 200 publication companies to put your novel out there. Maybe you just needed to face less than 10 rejections or self-published it and it becomes a hit? Maybe some crazy person will agree to your outer-space theme park idea and you’ll create some bizarre world. Maybe you’ll avoid eventual failure to focus on your strengths. It’s really up to you how things start or even end. It is your choice of a life.
I do not want to be won over, but earned.
Thursday nights are always exciting in my book. It’s when I finally get to relax and welcome the weekend (I only have school Monday-Thursday) and it’s also when all my favorite shows come up. Grey’s Anatomy for one, Suits before its winter finale and of course Scandal. I was a bit skeptical on starting Scandal – knowing too well that I’d either love it and add it to my growing list of shows to watch or hate it and hate myself for not finishing what I seemingly started. I did end up absolutely loving it; the show is just so smart that you simply can’t turn your back on it. The main character, Olivia Pope, is a force of nature. She’s successful, intelligent and probably necessary to every political animal there is in D.C. Let’s also not forget how this show is set in Washington D.C., which again adds to my love for D.C. based shows (i.e. Georgetown Cupcakes and Covert Affairs). The main character and her gladiators (kind of like associates) levels the show to new heights. And although there’s a technical difficulty of a philandering president, I believe his reasons are somewhat justifiable… weird as that sounds.
The last episode titled “A Woman Scorned” got to me in a weird way, and it probably did to just everybody else. With the iconic Olivia Pope finally drawing the line and yelling out the words “If you want me, earn me!” to our dear ol’ fictional president. It’s always an uphill-downhill kinda thing with them, and I guess this episode started to actually put things in motion with Mellie Grant going on live t.v. and accusing her husband of adultery… Which is actually what you’d expect from a woman scorned. But anyways, what I wanted to talk about were those 6 powerful words that girls all around the country are now throwing at to their male hopefuls. “If you want me, earn me!” But here’s the thing, people don’t know how they can be earned. Is it by letting him “choose you”? Buy you flowers? Hold your hand? Okay, I’m going all Bruno Mars on you but you get the point. What constitutes “earning”? I guess it’s personal preference of sorts. Some people may be low key while others have extremely high standards. It got me thinking though, that people often misunderstand the ways in which you earn someone. Do you actually get to earn them? Or just win them over? There’s a fine line of distinction between the two and I’m probably gonna make it one of my life’s goal to point out the difference. Either way, I prefer to be earned and not won over.
That Little Nook of Yours
Lists. Piles and piles of things to sift through and do. The worst thing? Is that it never ends. It just keeps piling up and rising and consuming the time in my hands. Although I spend majority of my time complaining about my said to-do lists, I also spend a good amount of it doing work. But it’s never enough. Nothing can ever be finished or fully accomplished. Life goes on because of that. The small things that keep us going are also the things that annoy us the most. My OCD might be kept at a minimal level, but I’ve always been manic about organization and knowing where my things are. At the same time, I’m fully in awe of those people whose got the guts to maintain such a mess of a work environment and still be able to function impeccably. I love seeing how people go through their workload and have their system; it puts me at ease that they can go through everything without having a system built in… their system!
As ridiculous as it sounds, people’s work spaces excite me. It’s like the holy grail of workaholics; the stacks of paper, mugs of coffee and the multiple browsers open in their laptop just makes everything seem much more real. The idea of productivity makes a nerd like me even more… nerdy. A person’s work space has this originality that must have sprung up only from their personality. And don’t get me wrong. Just because one may have a messy workplace doesn’t always mean they’re just a mess in general. Not at all! It may imply that they’re hard workers or even creative beings that don’t have the time to pause their wandering mind. Nonetheless, your work space is yours and you can do anything you want with it. I’m simply here to say that I’d love to observe.
breathingliberty 