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Check out my guest post on A Vigilant Muse!!

Car Rides and Fun Times

"A journey is best measured in friends, rather than miles"

--Tim Cahill

So.  I am currently at home, visiting the family for break, which means that I had the wonderful opportunity to drive across California for 12. hours.  Luckily, I had one of my friends with me, who just happens to be both insanely cheerful, and ridiculously deep.  We had some awesome conversations.

Some things we talked about? Religion.  That feeling you get when you're back home to visit.  Speeding tickets.  Life goals.  Musicals.  Harry Potter.  Favorite blogs.  Politics.  Boys.  Glee.  The war in Libya.  Schoolwork.  Little brothers.  Summer plans.... I could keep going...

It was such fun! (well, besides the driving...)  We listened to some great music, obviously had some great discussions, and generally just bonded. :)  And while I can't say that I enjoyed driving for a million years, it wasn't the worst experience of my life, and I am definitely not looking forward to the return trip without her.


Sometimes having a good friend next to you in the passenger seat is all that you need to make the trip worth it. :)

Juanes!

"Sometimes the worst days end up being the best stories"

--Unknown

Guess what!! I got to go to a Juanes concert this weekend!! Saturday night, in the SD sports arena (although, I guess they changed the name.. whatever).

Guys-- IT WAS AWESOME. AWESOME. Juanes was amazing.  There is literally nothing else I can say in this blog post to express how excited I was and how amazingly wonderfully FANTASTIC it was to see him live.

I thought I was going to be disappointed, or end up not recognizing many of the songs, but I was wrong! I even knew the words (in Spanish) to most of them. :P

Not only that, but the crowd was great, and our seats ended up being SO CLOSE (and only for $19!).  I really should stop this gushing now, before everything just goes into straight up CAPS LOCK, but hey, that's how I show my excitement. IT WAS SO GOOD.

Look how close our seats were!!

Yeah!

He's so beautiful!

Exclamation points = excitement!!

It had started out as a crappy crappy CRAPPY day (my car broke down, and in the process of attempting to fix it, I locked my keys in the ignition and ended up having to call AAA) but turned out amazing and wonderful. :)

Oh, the irony...

What is it with our culture these days, where we are obsessed with irony and making fun of people? It seems everywhere I turn there is some new internet sensation heatin' up teh interwebz.

What? Rebecca Black, of course.  What. The. HECKFIRE is up with that?!

It's not like this is the first time this has happened. People love crappy youtube videos.

Here is ONE MORE link of her video. You're welcome.

Also, if you liked that, why not check this one out?? The boy is super hot. Promise.

Sorry for getting those stuck in your head!!

Procrastination Station: Platform 9 3/4

I don't know what the title of this post has to do with anything besides the fact that WOW I HAVE NOT DONE ANY STUDYING in quite some time. Oops.

Instead, what have I done?

Well.  I discovered some new blogs.  My favorite is: called Rockstar Diaries. It's awesome. I kind of want their life.

I also taught myself how to make a sock bun.  Super important, I know.
Here is the video I used:

It actually turned out super cool looking! I think it is about to become one of my new favorite 'dos!

Didn't even realize how highlighted my hair is!

I just love how big it looks! TWSS

In the process of taking these pictures, I
re-discovered how much I hate my nose :(

AND THEN, as if that weren't enough procrastinating for one night, I was inspired by Keiko Lynn, my current blogging inspiration, to create this awesome "passionate pink" makeup look... although mine was TOTALLY different and way not as good as hers.  And then I proceeded to take 200 pictures of myself.  I wish I were joking, guys. Here are some of my favorites:

I promise I don't actually think I'm a model.

Absolutely love this one, for some reason.

Freakin' out!

I can haz freckels?

My totally lame version of Keiko Lynn's awwwwesome makeup job:

You can't even tell, amiright?

awwwwkward closeup..

And that's it.  I'm done procrastinating. I promise. Now I will study. STUDY!!

Viva La Musica!

Literally the only thing that gets me through finals week is good music.  OK, maybe that's not true... I do enjoy excessive amounts of junk food.. but still. Top 3 things.

This finals week I have been listening to a lot of 8tracks playlists, but my all time favorite study music is anything by Sam Hart.  Lucky for me (and now you!) he has an awesome channel on youtube that has gotten me through quite a few terrible, TERRIBLE weeks of studying and misery.  Also, procrastination.

His originals are amazing, but he also does some great covers.  His music is just chill enough to not distract from reading, but just upbeat enough not to make you fall asleep.  I encourage you all to check him out! NOW! Do it!

My favorite original song is, of course, Mario Kart Love Song, which is now on itunes!! (and has prompted about a gazillion covers all over youtube):

And my favorite cover would have to be his wonderful version of Michael Jackson's Man in the Mirror:

sooo good.

His youtube channel comments are basically just people begging him to PLEASE make an album so we can all buy it, so you know he must be good. :)

Aaaaaaand gonna stop procrastinating now..

But wait! Bonus video! Greatest thing ever!!

..how can you not be convinced of his amazingness after that? :P

Fashionable, F*ckable, Friday!

Since Friday was a work day and a finals study day, we'll be doing some fashion inspiration instead.  Also, I know this post wasn't actually put up on Friday, but due to the magic which is the internet, no one will ever know! Muahahaha...

So, since I have been a HUGGEEE fan of lists lately (they basically get me through the day, due to my ridiculous inability to remember anything for more than about a minute) I think I'll do an "I Want" list.

Here are some things that I want (and, if I had a million dollars, would totally buy):

1. Patterned tights!
I kind of have a thing for tights.  I also really want some dark maroon ones and some lacy black ones.  Although, I also looooove these:

From accessorize.com

2. Fancy Overcoat:
I realize it's not that cold in SD, but I feel like a man wearing my snowboarding jacket everywhere.  I like this one a lot:

From fcuk

3. Oxford Heels:
Love love love love them!

Rialto Burnished Oxford Wingtip Detail Heels

4. Vintage Oxfords:
OK, so kind of the same as above, but I can't help it! :)

Restricted Poodle Oxfords from Ruche

5. Chunky boots:

Romance Boots from Seychelles

6. Trouser Pants:
Not sure what these are actually called, but I have been wanting some high-waisted, capri pants for a while now..

On the Fast Track Pants from Modcloth.com

7. Loose cutoff jean shorts:
Here's the plan: Go to a thrift store, buy some men's jeans, cut them into some really loose shorts, and enjoy!

8. A Girly Blouse:
I wear t-shirts like... 90% of the time.  I need to invest in some grown-up clothing.  This blouse is adorable:

Purely Pleasant Top from Modcloth.com

9. On a less fashion-y, and a more nerdy note, anything from Sheldonsshirts.com:

or the Questionable Content Merch page:

Or this shirt from AVPM:

Sorry for the lack of links, I'm supposed to be studying for finals right now, and it was just too much effort.  Maybe later I'll put them in :)

Realization..

I just had an illuminating experience.

I went to the grocery store to buy some unhealthy study-snacks to keep me awake long enough to hopefully not fail my final tomorrow.  I admit, it was more or less just an attempt at procrastination, but, nonetheless, I had an agenda in mind and I was hoping to be in and out in less than 15 minutes.  I ran in, went over to the chip isle, the candy isle, the little section where they sell lunchables, and finally the produce section. I was ready to go!  Instead of heading over to the self-checkout like I usually would, I got in line with the regular, technologically-challenged people, so I could use a check.  I'm poor, okay?

The woman at the front of the line was a small, older lady, who had about 10 items.  She had a scowl on her face, and seemed like one of those somewhat awkward crazies who you might encounter in Wal Mart or something.  The cashier started to ring her up, and right away you could tell there were going to be problems.

Her first coupon was expired.  She made the cashier go get his manager to make sure it really was expired.  It was.  The next item was on sale, but didn't ring up as on sale.  Turned out she had to put in her Vons' card number.  The next few items went okay, but then she got distracted and forgot to keep her eye on the screen.  So the entire line (of almost 15 people by now) waited while she went through every item individually with the cashier to make sure everything was on sale and she was getting the best price possible.

To make matters worse, the girl in front of me started up a conversation with this lady about some of their mutual food choices, further extending the entire process and making pretty much everyone in the line give a collective sigh and eye-roll.

After about 10 more minutes of this, the lady was finally gone.  It was almost my turn! I just had to wait through Annoying Conversationalist Girl, and I would be on my way home to study (read: write a blog post).  As he was ringing up ACG, the cashier turned to her and said "Thanks for talking to her [the old woman].  She's a nice lady, she just gets focused on what she's doing and can be a little intense.  She's a good person though."

I was stunned.  Here I had been, sitting in line thinking about how much I hated my life, how frustrated I was that I had to wait in line when I had better things to be doing, how annoying it was that this lady was arguing over every single penny, trying to get a deal, and yet the cashier, who actually had to DEAL with her, was thanking someone for talking to her.  The entire time I was waiting in line, I was either thinking about how much I would hate to be that cashier, how annoyed he must be that she is making such a big fuss, or about how much I wanted to be home.  I kept imagining if she were a customer where I work-- how I would want to die or scream or charge her $100-- and the stories I would tell to my coworkers later.

Never once did I think of the actual woman herself.  She was obviously not well-off; she was a saver who had deliberately cut out coupons so that she could get the best deals, and she was doing her best to get her money's worth.  How could I judge her for that, when in fact, I was only standing in this line so that I wouldn't have to pay for my food right away by using my debit card?

Never once did I think about the entire situation from her point of view.  She must have shopped very carefully, only choosing the items for which she had coupons, and resisting all those impulse buys which had so easily sucked me in.  It was probably embarrassing for her to have to hold up the entire line, and even more embarrassing that she would care so much about the cost of her groceries.  She must have felt awkward, and you could tell she didn't really like interacting with people.  I bet going to the grocery store is an ordeal every single day for this lady.

At that moment, as hokey and cheesy as it sounds, I realized what a hypocrite I can be.  I spend my entire life working with people, for people, and about people.  I am obsessed with community development, youth leadership, empowering people, rights for the impoverished, etc etc etc.  And yet, when it comes to actually interacting and dealing with the people for whom I am supposedly working... I am a total bitch.  Why is it that, when I am in Latin America I am caring, compassionate, and empathetic for everyone I meet, and yet, waiting in line at the grocery store I could care less about others?  Do people have a certain quota of niceness and compassion, and once it runs out for the year we just stop giving a f*ck and move on?

Which brings me to my quote for today: "Treat everyone with politeness, even those who are rude to you - not because they are nice, but because you are"  --Author Unknown

I need to practice what I preach.  I need to think of others.  I need to understand that I am not the center of the world, just because I am the center of my world.  I need to realize that every day is a journey, and every interaction is a memory.  I need to accept the fact that everyone has bad days, even me, and often the only thing we can do about them is to be understanding.  I need to see other people as actual living, breathing, other people, and not just as objects floating around me in space.  I need to be realistic about the fact that there are certain people who I will hate, just as there are certain people that I will love (and a whole lot in between).  Regardless, every single person deserves my respect, patience, and kindness.

And every single one of us deserves to have people fighting for us, whether they be our cashier at our local grocery store, our best friend, or even a stranger waiting with us in line.

Not only that, but every single one of us has the responsibility to fight for other people, whether they need our support or not.  Especially those of us who base our entire existence on this principle...

So that's my pledge.  This is what I will be thinking about today, this week, hopefully my life.  I'm sure it will take a lot of reminders, some negative interactions, and some extremely awkward conversations.  But that's okay with me, because it is who I am, who I want to be.  No matter what happens, no matter who I become, no one can take away how I choose to interact with others.  Try it out yourself!  I'm not saying we can be perfect, I'm just saying we can be better.

5 Things Every Dining Hall Customer Should Know...

There is a lot of crap that people try to pull at my TOTALLY AWSOME job (can you tell I've been watching a lot of AVPM??), but there are, at the very least, five important things these so called "smart" college students should know:

5. We have these things, they're called TRASH CANS.
Put your trash in them.  No, not on your table. Or on your chair. Or on the little thing that says "DISHES ONLY."  Although, I realize how that last one might be hard to mistake for a trash can.  Especially since it looks nothing like a trash can.  And since it is SO FAR away from the actual trash can.  I mean, a whole two feet? You could be using the time it would take you to walk there for studying!!  Why didn't I think of that before?!

Hey guys-- half this stuff isn't even recyclable.. TRASHFAIL.

4. Signs are for reading.
If you ask me what the entree for dinner is, I will probably look up at the sign which is right in front of your face and read it to you verbatim.  No kidding!  I also go to college, and although you wouldn't know it, based off the crappiness which is my job, I can also read! Now you should learn to read as well, and my job will essentially become obsolete!


3. We see. We judge. We talk.

They should make "GossipGirl: Dining Hall Edition".

Spoiler alert: You know those people who are serving you food, but look the exact same age as you and are even in some of your classes? The ones that work at the dining hall and look like they have no souls?  They are students at your school too.  That means they pretty much know who you are, and who you hang out with.  That also means, that when you walk into the dining hall to get breakfast at 1pm on a Saturday, and you are wearing your pajamas and hanging onto a girl who is still wearing a dress and is barefoot, they notice.  They also feel no shame for the fact that they judge hardcore.  I'm not sure how this suddenly got into 3rd person, but what I am trying to say is: WE SEE. WE JUDGE. WE TALK.  If you come in every single Saturday morning with a different person: we see. we judge. we talk.
Oh, and we have nicknames for you, too.  Are you a blond boy with long hair? You're Retarded Zac Efron.  Do you awkwardly stare at us instead of ordering food? You might be referred to as Awkward Staring Boy.  Do you complain about everything?  Well, then you're probably The Effing Bitch.  I'm not saying we're creative, I'm just saying, we judge.

Although it may be HOT, it's not really my idea of high fashion.

2. This is not my usual outfit:
I don't know why people are always so surprised to see me NOT in my work clothes.  Do you all think that I enjoy wearing an ugly hat and smelling like food all the time?  Do you think that, even at frat parties, basketball games (hah. like I actually go to either of those, but not the point.), in class, and when shopping at the grocery store, I am wearing my hat and polo?
Also, and I know it may be hard for you to believe, but I do not remember every single person who comes into work.  Even if I might have had a funny or cute or even "flirtatious" (hint: I wasn't actually flirting, but oh well) conversation with you.  As unrecognizable as I am without my uniform, a good number of you STILL manage to attempt to continue a conversation we had while I was working.  At the library. Or a party.  And then you're surprised that I look normal in real life. Because I'm not wearing my uniform.  I just don't GET IT.


1. I am not a superhero. 
No really though, I'm not.  None of us are, actually.  Know what that means?  That means that I don't have x-ray vision.  Or mind-reading skills. Know what THAT means?

Not me.

Let's see... say you and your friends want to go get some food, so you head over to the dining hall as a big group.  You go to the grill and get a double bacon cheese burger, wrapped to go.  Then you, your friends, and your boyfriend (who you're treating, of course) all head up to the cashier with all of your stuff on a tray (NOTE: ONE tray), where poor little me has to ring you up.

Getting minutely closer, but nope, (unfortunately) still not me.

Now, if I were a superhero, I would use my x-ray vision to tell that you had a greasy, slimy, double bacon cheeseburger and charge you the $15 or however much it costs for it (I'm really good at my job, obviously).  I would use my mind-reading skills to tell that you got the burger and fries, your boyfriend got the small salad, your best friend got the sandwich, soda, cookie, and pizza, and your roommate got the sushi, fried chicken, and quesadilla.  Also, I would know that you were paying for your anorexic boyfriend, but NOT your fat-ass friends.
However, and I can't stress this point enough, I AM NOT A SUPERHERO.  So, I can't do any of that.  And when I ask you what you got from the grill, glaring at me and grunting unintelligible syllables STILL isn't going to make me understand.  And when I "accidentally" charge you for you and your dumb friends' meal (which is, again, all on ONE TRAY), don't expect me to feel any sympathy that your mommy had to pay $5 extra today.  It's monopoly money, people.

I know that was harsh, but these freshmen need to learn somehow, and I suggest starting with these 5 tips.