#TBT

This time of year makes me really nostagalic. Usually, it's because of the string of high school events that are going on. (IE prom, graduation) So, I decided to go back in time and give you all couple of throwbacks of some of my favorite high school memories!
Prom:
 
Griffin and I, May 2012
Badminton:
 
(Helena and I, October 2011)
Graduation:
 
(Griffin and I, June 2012)
Band:
 
(Helena and I, June 2012)
Three Year's Worth of New York Trips!
 
(Liz, Sarah, and I, May 2009)
 Graduation Party:
 
(Griffin, Gabriel, and I, June 2012)
Chalk Festival:
 
(Iris and I, June 2012)
Going through all of these pictures really made me nostalgic. I still can't believe I graduated almost three years ago. What were your favorite memories in high school? Comment below!

Exploring Sleeping Giant

It seems I've been crossing many things off of my summer bucket list lately! (Check here for my last update) And last Friday, I got to  cross out one more. And that is? Getting to explore Sleeping Giant.
Sleeping Giant, for those who don't know, is a state park located in my small Connecticut town, not too far from Quinnipiac University. I've always wanted to, but never got a chance. Well that changed when Gabriel asked to go hiking. Let's just say I mostly did it for the blog ;)
 
 
After grabbing some Starbucks and Thai food, we headed to conquer. I was excited, because hey it's something that I always  wanted to do. The weather was simply beautiful and the park was amazing. We ended up talking about what was going in our lives, as well as our plans for the weekend. We didn't end up hiking the entire thing, but we did end up exploring QU when we were done. (Where Gabriel took a video on Snapchat that they are still proud of)

Overall, it was a beautiful way to spend my day off. What better way to spend it with fun friends, great food and of course a chance to get out there and explore? I can't think of anything else!

Book Review: We Were Liars

Okay, so this book wasn't on my summer reading list. However, this book was something I was dying to read for a while, so I decided to read it since I had the chance.
The book is about Cadence Sinclair, and her 17th summer at Beechwood, a private island owned by Cady's wealthy family. Every summer, the family gathers and catches up. Cady had suffered a head injury the a few summers back and is having trouble remembering much of what happened during the summer of her accident. She returns after spending the previous summer with her father in Europe, to finally put the pieces together of what happened during the summer where she lost her memory.
The novel goes through Cady's journey to remember what happened during that fateful night. I'm not going to reveal the ending, however, to me it was a surprise.
I honestly really enjoyed reading this book. I thought the way Lockhart laid out the events was skillfully done.The book was amazingly well written, and it's one of those books when you start them, you simply can't put them down. You want to figure out the mystery, so it grabs you in.
So, if you're looking for a book to bring on your beach adventures or a book to engross you this summer look no further. "We Were Liars" by e. lockhart is the perfect book for you.

Reaction to the Duggar Interviews

Last Wednesday and last Friday night, four members of the Duggar family sat down to be interviewed regarding the molestations of Josh Duggar. The first interview was with Josh's parents, Jim Bob and Michelle, while the second one was with Josh's victims Jill and Jessa. While staying tuned to my television set this past Friday night (I unfortunately was working during the one with Jim Bob and Michelle), I have the following to say.

What transpired during the interviews Friday night was a combination of the following. Defending their brother and the way their parents handled the situation. Forgiveness for their brother and how they were able to forgive him. They blamed the media for betraying their trust and making this a front page headline, despite the events in which this took place was over 12 years ago. 

The sisters said they were both asleep and unaware while Josh was doing until their parents told them what happened. According to Jessa Duggar, he was "a little too curious about girls." Jessa did go onto to classify their brother's actions were wrong. Both Jill and Jessa say that they aren't victims, when clearly they are. 

After constantly hearing about this in the news, I question many things. Those girls were Josh's victims. I question the Duggar's ability to parent. If someone was hurting my children, I wouldn't allow him back in my home. The line becomes messy and muddled especially since it was their son that performed these actions. They did get their child help, and take him back into the home. On Wednesday's interview, Michelle did go on to say there are safety guards up as well not letting old boys babysit the younger children.  Jim Bob did go on to say that "it was over the clothes." But, if the touching wasn't wanted or appropriate doesn't it still classify it as wrong? 

I do also question how the girls were be able to be asleep during this. I've read in many places that victims pretend they were asleep when getting molested.  This in my opinion doesn't match up, and I still question the validity of this statement. 

The future of this conservative Christian family is a bit sketchy. Right now, TLC has pulled the show from its' lineup, and it's currently in limbo for cancellation. For me, this is ridiculous because when the Honey Boo Boo scandal happened, the show was history with no questions asked. The same concept should be applied to "19 Kids and Counting" because I believe this is a bit worse than that. Child molestation while talking about Christian values? That's not really Christianlike for me. 

I'll be the first to admit that "19 Kids and Counting" is my guilty pleasure. However, in light of the recent controversy, I'll be the first to admit that this whole situation is 50 shades of screwed up. 

Blogging is Like A Job.

I've been blogging for over three years, and the title is basically the conclusion I've come to. This blog has come a long way since it's first post, where the only people that would read this little blog had my number. (They were actually my friends, who I forced to read this blog by sending them thousands of emails on the daily. I also blogged almost every day.) That was before I read "Blog Inc.," before I joined the Her Campus group and before I even knew some of my favorite bloggers even existed. Nowadays, I promote my blog through countless social media, like Facebook, Twitter and follow several bloggers on Instagram. 
I recently read a post on the College Girl Daily about blogging. Needless to say, it's something I do because I like writing. I'm an intern at College Fashionista, I've written for the school newspaper for the past two years and I'm a reporter for my small town newspaper. However, blogging is something that's like a job. After all, you have to write posts, get pictures if you want, get ideas for posts and simply make sure you have enough time to promote them.
Blogging in some ways is like a job. But, at the very least it's definitely worth it. Through blogging, I've noticed an increase of how much connections I have through social media. My writing has improved. So, in a nutshell my hard work as a blogger is worth it. I hope that my little space on the Internet will get even more bigger as time continues. For instance, I'm so glad to announce that this little blog has received the most views in May since probably July of last year.
Blogging is something that as a journalist, I'll always enjoy doing. At the end of the day, it's more fun writing for yourself than anyone else.

Book Review: Nice Is Just A Place In France

As you all can recall earlier, I recently did a post about my summer reading list. One of the first books I've recently read was the book "Nice Is Just a Place in France" by the Betches.
I wanted to read this book because I had heard so much hype on it from various bloggers and other people who picked up this book. After doing some careful research (aka just reading the comments), it looked good so I decided to pick it up.
I thought the book was really entertaining and well written. I liked how this was a guidebook, but not really a guidebook. It was an easy read, and I honestly enjoyed reading it. It really struck a cord with me because I think I'm too much of a 'nice girl' and I really need to develop a back bone.
I recommend this book for just about anyone out there whose looking for a good book to read this summer. It's a must have because not only is it humorous, but it also does talk about a lot of pop culture. It was a fast and easy read, perfect for those who are putting the harder reads of the semester fast behind them.
So, are you interested in this book? Pick it up at Barnes and Noble today! 

Music Monday: May Music Obsessions

The title of this post has such alliteration! Anyways, for those of you who know me, I love a good playlist. During my time as the Opinions Editor for the Southern News, I had to make a playlist every week and I was in heaven. Lately, I've been adding music to my iTunes library like crazy! From Lil Wayne, to Lindsay Lohan my iTunes and iPod have been gratefully accepting my new music choices to jam to. So, I decided to share a playlist with you...enjoy! (Some of these songs are a bit older, so #throwback!)

1. Born to Die by Lana Del Rey 
2. What Makes You Beautiful by One Direction 
3. Love Me Like You Do by Ellie Goulding (from 50 Shades of Grey)
4. One by Ed Sheeran
5. Perry Mason by Ozzy Osbourne
6. Closer by Tegan and Sara 
7. Hold on We're Going Home by Drake 
8. Summertime Sadness by Lana Del Rey 
9. Don't by Ed Sheeran 
10. Dangerous by Roxette
11. Style by Taylor Swift 
12. Heaven Knows by the Pretty Reckless 
13. American by Lana Del Rey 
14. Miracle Man by Ozzy Osbourne
15. West Coast by Lana Del Rey