Summer Listings | Follow-Up

Hi World!

I know I haven't written much at all this summer, but that doesn't mean I haven't been doing things. I am now back in school and I thought at the very least, I'd make a follow-up post to my Summer Listings that I did on the first day of summer.

• Get a job and work before going back to school
• Right... yeah this one didn't happen. I applied to many places and got some interviews, but it never really worked out. Oh well, I'm definitely going to keep trying either during this school year or next summer.
• Read 3 books (one for June, July, and August)
• This one was a success! I think I read seven books, so I went above and beyond for this one. I read Me Before You by Jojo Moyes and then I went on to read the Harry Potter series. I read books one to six. I'm about halfway through Deathly Hallows right now, and then I'm excited to read Cursed Child.
• Watch movies/TV shows that I've heard about and wanted to check out
• I'd call this one a success too! I watched The 100, which was recommended to me by a friend, and I really enjoyed it. I'm waiting for season 3 to be on Netflix so I can catch myself up. I didn't expect the show to be as dark as it is, but I do like it. I also watched Scream, which was recommended to me by the same friend and enjoyed this one as well. I binged season 1 in a flash and watched season 2 with a pair of friends throughout the season. I loved the first season, but the second one has me feeling a bit iffy. It reminds me of PLL a little too much in that whenever the villain/killer is revealed, there's always another one, which I don't like.
• Take more pictures
• I took a good amount of pictures this summer, so this one worked out too, I'd say.
• Watch the sunrise
• This one didn't happen, but I'd still really like to do it someday, perhaps while traveling abroad.
• Walk barefoot in the warm sand and in the cool grass
• I walked in the cool grass, but I don't think I ever went to beach to put my feet in the sand :(
• Go on sunset runs
• I went on a couple of these. I still enjoy them, even if I didn't do them as often as I did last summer.
• Spend time exploring parks
• I had a fair of park hangs this summer. Especially after Pokemon GO came out. Gotta catch 'em all.
• Go on more hikes
• I went on one this summer with my family for my mom's birthday! We went to Torrey Pines and it was beautiful.
• Dance more/Learn 3 new sets of choreo (one for June, July, and August
• This one is was a partial success. I believe I learned one more Matt Steffanina piece for his "Do It Again" (by Pia Mia) choreo and then some Dana Alexa choreo with "Into You" (by Ariana Grande). The latter I managed to figure it out without a tutorial because there wasn't one. I was proud of myself when I learned it.
• Go on random adventures/do things I've never done before/visit new places
• I'm not sure if I went on any significant random adventures, but I did do things I've never done before/visit new places. I got my first massage, got my brows fleeked threaded for the first time, did yoga, went to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter (aka Harry Potter land), and saw Halsey in concert, among other things.

This summer wasn't as jam-packed with activities as last summer was for me, but I'd say it was still a good one albeit pretty chill. I made more good memories though, which is what matters.

How was your summer? Tell what you've been up in the comments!

xx

Twitter | Instagram | Tumblr | Bloglovin'

Summer Listings

Hi World!

Seeing as today is the first day of summer, I thought I'd make a list of things I want to do for the sunny season.

What I Want To Do:

• Get a job and work before going back to school
• I've never had a job before, so this should be a good experience (assuming I get hired). Also, some money would be nice.
• Read 3 books (one for June, July, and August)
• I don't read that often anymore, but I still enjoy it... especially when it's not for homework.
• Watch movies/TV shows that I've heard about and wanted to check out
• I have a list of movies and TV shows that I've been wanting to watch. I didn't have time to get to them while I was in school, but now I've got plenty of spare time!
• Take more pictures
• I often just screenshot on Snapchat or ask my friends to send me pictures they've taken when we're together instead of taking my own pictures. I like taking my own, but when I'm with others, I don't like taking my phone out so I can just enjoy their company and not be on my phone all the time. Live in the moment and all that. Hopefully, I can learn to find a balance.
• Watch the sunrise
• I'm a night owl. I stay up until it's a couple hours before sunrise. I see the early half of the AM more often than its later hours, but I don't think I've ever watched the sun rise before. I'm sure it's beautiful. I love sunsets, but I've heard that sunrises are even better, which to me, is a bit hard to believe.
• Walk barefoot in the warm sand and in the cool grass (hence the two pictures I've included in this post)
• These are two of my favorite sensory (touch) experiences.
• Go on sunset runs
• Last summer, I ran at least a couple times a month around sunset and I actually really liked it. Hopefully, I can start making them a frequent thing again. If not, at least take some nice walks when the sun is setting.
• Spend time exploring parks
• I love me some park hangs.
• Go on more hikes
• Fun exercise and adventures? Count me in.
• Dance more/Learn 3 new sets of choreo (one for June, July, and August)
• Like I mentioned in my April Favorites, I started learning Matt Steffanina's choreography. His routines are so much fun to dance to, so I look forward to this one.
• Go on random adventures/do things I've never done before/visit new places
• I just like adventures, yo. Hit me up, friends.

What are some things you'd like to do/achieve this summer?

xx

Twitter | Instagram | Tumblr | Bloglovin'

May Favorites

Hi World!

I'm a little late with this favorites post, so let's get straight into it!

Album

"Dangerous Woman" by Ariana Grande

(Source)

I love Ariana Grande. Gurl. Can. Sing. Admittedly, I was a bit apprehensive when waiting for this album. I adore her first album. I enjoyed her second album too, but after listening to "My Everything," I was worried that album number three would be too heavy on the EDM. Though "Dangerous Woman" does still make use of some electronic music elements, I'm very happy with it. I played it on repeat for at least a week once I got my hands on the album. My current top 5 from "Dangerous Woman" (in no particular order) are:

Moonlight
Greedy
Touch It
Thinking Bout You
Bad Decisions

I was upset when I found out that her third album wasn't going to be called "Moonlight" as originally planned, but after hearing the album, it makes a lot of sense. I mean, she does says the word "dangerous" in more than a good handful of songs on the album. At least, I got to hear the song, "Moonlight," which I do like very much. The album is great. Great vocals as always. Bless my ears, queen.

(Source)

Now, you might be wondering why I included two pictures of the album cover and why neither of them are the standard American cover. Well reader, that would be because I'm not the biggest fan of the album cover. The bunny ears don't really intimidate me or give me "Dangerous Woman" vibes. The first cover that I included above, still with the bunny ears, is alright. In fact, if you purchased the physical album and saw the other pictures from her album photoshoot, I would have been fine with most of those being the album cover. I just don't like the one they picked. However, I LOVE the Japanese album cover, which is this second one, without the bunny ears. She's got this intense, fierce gaze and I love it. Though the album cover isn't my favorite, I do really like the album. Not sure if it surpasses the first album for me, but I think it's better than the second one. Well done, Ari. *clapping emoji*

Song

"Write On Me" by Fifth Harmony

Ariana Grande wasn't the only one of my favorite artists to release an album in May. Fifth Harmony did too. I admit that I was more excited for the 5H album than I was for the Ariana album, but I ended liking the Ariana album better. However, the 5H album does have some great songs. When "Write On Me" first came out, I fell in love with it. As you know, I love my ballads and slow songs, but 5H isn't a group that does a lot of those. "Write On Me" is a slower 5H song, and I just really like it. Lyrically, it's beautiful. Vocally too. I really like how they distributed each of the girls' voices. I would've preferred a bit more Dinah, but that's alright.

TV Show

Food Wars! aka Shokugeki no Soma

(Source)

My brother loves to watch anime and I think that's great. I can appreciate anime, but I don't watch much of it. Some of my favorites are "Cardcaptors" and "Ouran High School Host Club." Anywho, this anime is about food and cooking. If you can get past the fact that they literally depict the flavors of the food as orgasmic, I think people can really like this anime. You learn interesting things about cooking and different types of food. It's just really entertaining. It has one season so far and I believe the second one is coming in the near future. I'm very excited.

What are some of your May favorites?

xx

Twitter | Instagram | Tumblr | Bloglovin'

Blog Update | Summer 2016

Hi World!

Happy Wednesday! If you've been following this blog for a couple months, you now that Wednesdays are usually when I post a Weekly Wednesday Snap (WWS). Unfortunately, today's post will not be one of those. One reason for this is that I haven't taken many pictures lately that I feel are worth sharing with you. The other is that I wanted to give you an update on the blog.

About 2 weeks ago, I finished up my first year of college (woot!) and I am now on summer break until fall semester. If you remember from my first post of this year, when I wrote a blog update, I mentioned that I was taking a Communications class and that we were tasked with creating or continuing a blog. I decided to continue this one. I'm really glad I did. It's been fun blogging these past couple months. However, now that I am not required to blog for my grade (I believe I got full points for it, yay!), I'm slightly less motivated to blog as often. As a result, I am concluding the WWS feature with last week's post. I might do some Random Snap posts every now and then though. Again, I probably won't blog as much as I have recently, but I still have a number of posts planned, so you'll still get to see something from me throughout the summer. After that, we'll just see where the wind takes us. Sound good?

I hope that those of you who have been keeping up with my blog have been enjoying it. I'll see you soon with another post. Have a wonderful morning/day/night wherever you are :)

xx

Twitter | Instagram | Tumblr | Bloglovin'

Weekly Wednesday Snap | Sprout Hair

Hi World!

Don't know what a Weekly Wednesday Snap is? Click HERE.

A short and sweet post today, folks. Please enjoy this snap of me and what I'm calling my "sprout hair." Alternate names include "fountain hair" or "palm tree hair." I sent this to a couple of my friends on Snapchat after realizing that my hair resembled the sprout emoji. A good look, no?

I'm now on summer break and I've just been chillin' at home. As you can see from my look above, my hair is getting pretty long. I usually cut my hair around 3 times a year, so this is normal. I grow it out  for months and then cut most of it off, which "restarts my cycle." I want to cut my hair for summer, but I also don't. Maybe I'm just too lazy to go get it cut. My best friend wants me to grow out my hair so that I can rock a man bun. I'm not that opposed to it. Currently, I can only tie the top layers of my hair. If I try to tie all of it into a ponytail, half of it just falls out due to my bottom layers. I've actually had my hair really long before, though. If you delve deep enough into my Instagram, you'll find some pictures of me with my long, luscious locks. The longest I'm willing to grow it, at this point, is until I start school again in August. We'll see though. The main reason I cut my hair is because it gets annoying, but I'm fine right now. Long hair makes dancing more fun. Stay tuned.

How's your hair looking today?

xx

Twitter | Instagram | Tumblr | Bloglovin'

Weekly Wednesday Snap | Studying For Finals

Hi World!

Don't know what a Weekly Wednesday Snap is? Click HERE.

Apologies in advance, today's snap isn't the most interesting picture. I haven't done too much lately and seeing as its finals week for me, I've been studying... but mainly yesterday and today. C'mon, you know you do the same when it's time for exams. Anywho, I took this snap today when I was studying for a history final. I usually rewrite my notes to study or make some sort of an outline if it's an essay and I know what the prompt is. Today I had three finals, which I didn't anticipate when I was making my spring semester schedule last year. One for geology (rocks on rocks on rocks), one for history, and one for comm. My school posts the final exam schedule in advance, but I never thought to check it when I was signing up for classes.

All of my finals are now over though, which is awesome. I guess that's the nice part about having all of your finals on the same day. You just get them over with. But it is a bit exhausting having to worry about getting from one final to the next, and trying to get in some last minute studying. I feel like I passed all of my classes this semester. Maybe not all As, but I think I did okay on my finals.

If it's finals week for you too, or you're going to take them soon, good luck! If you already took yours, I hope they went well!

xx

Twitter | Instagram | Tumblr | Bloglovin'

Story Time | Meeting Leroy Sanchez

Hi World!

If you follow me on Instagram, you might have already seen this post of me and Leroy Sanchez. And if you saw my April Favorites, you know that he was one of them.

Whether or not you've seen either, it's story time! A while ago, around January/February, I purchased Justin Bieber's "Purpose," which included the song, "The Feeling" featuring Halsey. Now if you've been following me these past couple months, you'd know that I love Halsey. Anywho, I was walking back from dinner with my friend Rachel one night and I started talking about Halsey and some of her songs. "The Feeling" was one of them and I told her to check out some Halsey's music.

Flash forward to April 19 (I'm checking my texts right now), Rachel texted me, "OMG IM OBSESSED WITH THE SONG THE FEELING BY JUSTIN BIEBER AND HALSEY lol" and I freak out, naturally. She then proceeds to ask me if I had seen a cover of the song by Leroy Sanchez and Jessica Sanchez (no relation). I had not, so I clicked on the video and loved the cover. I included the video in my April Favorites, but if you haven't seen it, check out the video below and then check out his channel.

After watching the cover and enjoying the sound of his voice, I decided to check out his channel and sample his other covers. I watched so many. Needless to say, I was instantly obsessed. He has a really nice voice with a good range that's capable of some awesome vocal runs.

On April 29, 10 days after getting the initial text from Rachel and it changing my life because I just kept listening to his voice and watching his videos, I'm walking to Starbucks with a friend and I see THIS.

I had to do a double take. My friend who was with me at the time didn't know who he was or why I was having some sort of mental breakdown, so I had to recollect myself and text Rachel and my best friend about it. What are the chances that 10 DAYS after I start watching his videos, I find a sign saying that he would be performing AT MY SCHOOL. My only issue with this was the time. This semester, I have a class from 11:30 AM - 12:45 PM and his set goes from Noon - 1 PM. I seriously considered skipping class for his set. I always go to class, so this was obviously a big deal. Ultimately, I did end up going to class, but as the picture at the beginning of this post indicates, I was able to see him! I frantically texted Rachel before my class, who wanted to see him too, asking her to take pictures and video/get something signed for me just in case I couldn't make it. Luckily, that wasn't necessary.

After my class ended, I power walked my way down to where he was performing, found Rachel, and was able to catch the last 10 minutes of his set, where he performed a medley of songs that included, "Dear No One" by Tori Kelly and "Love On Top" by Beyonce, among others. He was incredible, my ears were blessed by his voice, and all was well. After he finished his set, I was wondering if we were going to be able to meet him. I watched the crowd and as a line started forming, I saw people start to take pictures and talk to him. Another issue arose though... I had a big exam at 2 PM and his set ended around 1 PM. I had an hour. We were towards the end of the line, so I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to meet him and make it to the exam on time, so I had a quite a bit of anxiety over it. I still had Rachel as my back-up plan, but her phone was dying. *stress* It took roughly an hour before we finally got to meet him, but it happened!

Here's a snap that Rachel took when me and Leroy hugged. He gives good hugs, in case you were curious. She met him first and asked him to sing part of "The Feeling" with her. You can see that on her Instagram, which I tagged in my Instagram post. She's a really good singer too. Side note: I really liked his hat and his jacket. His outfit in general too.

This is the original picture of the one that I posted before I edited it for lighting and place it in square format. Even though Instagram allows you to post pictures without the square restriction, I still like to keep them in the square orientation. Anywho, I zoomed in for the square to  take away any random objects and then tweaked the lighting/used filters. The lighting was really bad where we were, but hey, I still met him and that's all that matters. I sacrificed a bit of clarity and photo quality on the one that I posted, but I think it looks fine.

But yeah, I met Leroy Sanchez. I told him I loved his voice and that he had a great show. He was great. Everything was good. After we took the pictures, I sprinted off to take my test! (which I passed. Woot!)

Do you have any fun stories of when you met a celebrity and/or Internet person! Tell me in the comments below!

xx

Twitter | Instagram | Tumblr | Bloglovin'