Those Who Are Gone

This blog entry is to honor two men. One man I knew, the other was a complete and total stranger, yet I somehow knew him, as did thousands of fans of his.

A few days ago, I watched the episode of glee with Cory Montieth. I have just gotten into the whole glee thing pretty recently, and have fallen for it pretty quickly. However, I couldn't help but burst out into tears...for the entire episode.
Cory, you had thousands of fans who loved you. You were a talented kid, and whose talents are greatly appreciated by the community of tweens, teens, and everyone else. You were loved by cast members, by fans, and your friends and family. Your life was short, and but not forgotton. You have left an imprint on the fans who loved you, and the family that knew you. Rest in peace, Cory. You were the quarterback, and always will be.

Yesterday marked the two year anniversary of my grandfather Cosmo's (pictured above) death. I decided to visit him, for some odd reason. I hate going to his grave, because it reminds me of him being sick. It reminds me of just leaving him the day of his funeral. It reminds me of how his life ended, something that I really can't take thinking about. I like to think of him as happy and healthy, not as sick and as a corpse. When I go to his grave the few times that I have, I often get flooded back with haunted memories of his ghost. I don't want to remember that man. I want to remember the one with the crazy one liners, the one who took care of me, and made me laugh.
Death and dying is a part of life we can not avoid. However, when we are forced to deal with death and dying we have to remember not that it was over, we have to remember that during their lives, there was happy moments. I believe that you should celebrate life, not mourn it. Grieving comes naturally, and we all have to go through it, some earlier than others.
The men I mentioned were great men. Today, I honor them, because they lived a great life, with people who truly loved them.
Those who have gone have inspired us to realize that life is truly short, and that we have to take advantage of everyday, because it's may as well as be our last.

Jumping Off the Edge

Risks are crazy things that we take in order to find happiness. They can range from texting the person you are interested in, to jumping off of something high. Well in a way, we are jumping. Jumping into the unknown with no solid certainty or ground below. All we have is what knowledge we are given, and nothing else. The prize is what we want. 

Sometimes, past experiences can paralyze us from forever taking risks. We've been hurt before, why the hell would you want to do it again? We can't curl up in a ball and lick our wounds. They will never heal. By getting out and doing stuff, then your wounds will slowly heal. By not thinking about the pain, and only thinking about the reward, we get motivated to get off of the couch, to stop stuffing our faces with the junk food that makes us smile, and actually being happy again. This takes time love and tenderness as Michael Bolton once said, but at the end of the day, life with out risk isn't life at all. 

If no one took a risk then there would be no America, no music that's playing on our iPod, and no television. Life is full of failure, and it's how it's going to be for the rest of our lives. What makes someone great, and what makes someone actually succeed is getting off of their ass and actually doing something to get the thing or in the romantic sense, the person that they desire. A person who got hurt once, of course will be cautious. Eventually, and hopefully, the caution will go away.
I am sitting here, and wondering if I will actually take my own advice. I'm one of those people who can listen to someone else's problems, and be able to give them an easy clear cut answer. However, when it comes to my own? Not so much. I wonder if that makes me a hypocrite. Maybe because we have to be the judge of the effect. 

I've come to one conclusion. It's easier said than done. We can say a thousand things, have a thousand dreams, but yet fail to complete just one. Maybe it's the fear of flying in dead air, with nothing and no one to catch me. A friend pointed out to be yesterday that you gotta be hurt to be happy. I believe that's true, and I will try to live my life not looking for the hurt, but looking for the happiness. 

Let's jump off the edge today. 

For those of you wanted some music to fuel you during your risk: 

Ellie Goulding's Anything Could Happen.

Things I Love Thursday: Vera Bradley Wristlets

 (English Rose pattern in the smaller style) 

(carry it all wristlet) 

Have you ever gone out, and not wanted to carry the entire contents of your purse with you, however you needed money, phone, and all of that basic stuff? As a college student, switching from my backpack to purse and vice versa can be annoying because I often would neglect to bring things that I needed, such as money, and my ID.

I then discovered this wrist let (this is actually the pattern that I have it; featured above), and my life was changed forever. I like it because I can fit it in both my purse, AND my backpack. I can put my keys onto it, fit my phone, have my IDs available without digging for it, and it's all organized, which is great because I know where everything is when I need it. It's also good for when I don't want to take my purse out, because it's light, and holds everything that I need to be held.

It comes in two sizes; the smaller one is $36, and the larger one is $49. If you have a smaller phone, than opt for the smaller one. If you have a larger phone than opt for the bigger one. If you have an iPhone, get the bigger one, because the smaller one is too small to hold your phone. 

I basically don't go anywhere with out this. I recommend this to any student because of it's convenience. Once you get this, you won't know what you did without it. 

Why sir, I must confess!

I saw a post about someone's confessions recently, and thought 'hey I have confessions too!' I know that you all want to know them. Come on, admit it. Anyways, without further a due, here are my confessions. I must confess:

• I've seen every episode of Gilmore Girls. It's my favorite television show ever. 

• I love coffee way too much. I typically have one to two cups a day. However, I realize that all of the coffee that I enjoy is flavored coffee.

• My favorite hobby is singing. I always wanted to be a singer, but I'm extremely self conscious about my voice. 
• I happen to enjoy Taylor Swift music. 

• I've also have seen every holiday Peanuts special. 

Those are my confessions. What are yours?

Image creds go to google image search.

Music Monday: Lana Del Ray.

For those of you who know me personally I'm a classic rock kind of girl. It's rare that I find music from today that I love. However, one of the few exceptions is Lana Del Ray. She is without a doubt my favorite modern artist. 

Lana, also known as Elizabeth Grant, has two albums out. Born to Die, and the EP Paradise. You may know her better from the Great Gatsby. She sang the song "Young and Beautiful" (music video featured below). Her music is unlike anything I've ever listened to. It sounds like something from another era. It's very classy and well polished.  Maybe that's why I love about it. 

My favorite songs by Lana include:

• Young and Beautiful (the Great Gatsby) 

•  Born to Die (Born to Die) 

•  Off to the Races (Born to Die) 

•  Summertime Sadness (Born to Die)
• Video Games (Born to Die) 
• National Anthem (Born to Die)
•  Burning Desire (Paradise) 

•  That's What Makes Us Girls (Born to Die)
• Ride (Paradise) 

•  American (Paradise)
•  Gods and Monsters (Paradise)
• Blue Jeans (Born to Die)

Lana Del Ray is currently working on her third studio album. The title is yet to be known. In the meantime,we have her hits, which in my opinion are classics.

Young and Beautiful:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_1aF54DO60

Welcome to Music Monday where I showcase some of my favorite artists and write about them. This is a new feature that I'm trying out here. If you think I should listen to an artist to feature here, please comment below! 

Things I Like About Fall.

Fall is here! The leaves are changing, and it's time to celebrate the new season. Here are my favorite things about fall:

• Pumpkin Flavored Items: Yes I know that pumpkin flavored things are the it thing right now. But I enjoy them because they taste simply amazing. I get a pumpkin flavored coffee drink every morning. Hot, not iced coffee. Fall is ideal for the whole drinking a hot beverage thing, because in the morning, it can be chilly. Plus in the summer, it can be way too hot to enjoy hot coffee anyways. I also enjoy pumpkin bread, especially with cream cheese.

• It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown! I love watching this every year. It's such a classic.

• The foliage. Fall in New England can be so pretty! I often catch myself taking lots of Instagram worthy pictures this time of year. It's just a pretty season.
• Warm, comfy sweaters. They are so roomy and comfortable. Fall is the only time when it's socially acceptable to wear one. 
• Candy Apples. They are considered a fruit right? Okay, probably not. 

• Candy Corn. This has to be my favorite Halloween candy of all time. Whenever I eat it, I am instantly am addicted and can't stop eating. It's just a sweet reminder that takes me back to the days of when I used to treat or treat. 

What are your favorite things about fall?

Pst: I got this idea from a college blogger named Jenny. Check out her post here:

http://sprinklesandsundresses.blogspot.com/2013/10/my-ten-favorite-things-about-fall.html?showComment=1381005333135#c2844140062379714490

Awkward!

Everyone in this universe has an awkward situation that they encounter at some point in their lives. It's all a part of being human, kind of like breathing and stuff like that.
How are awkward situations caused? In my case, it happens simply when I don't know how to act in a particular situation. Also being awkward can spill into the whole being in uncomfortable situations thing. However, it's not as dominant as we would like to think of it as being. I do however would like to argue that some people are more awkward than others. I guess it has to do with personality, and the way we handle things.
Here are some of the awkward situations that I notice myself being in more as a college student:

• Not knowing what to say when you meet an attractive person. Come on, give it up. We have all been there. I often don't say anything. When we're around people that we find attractive, we tend to say things that we think sound stupid. We may even do stupid things like trip or spill our coffee over them. That's awkward. Flirting for me isn't exactly the greatest thing ever, although like most things the more you practice them, the easier that it gets. Just be yourself and everything will be fine, pinky swear! 
• Having classes with an ex significant other or friend. Have you ever encountered a person who you just don't like or a person who you really just don't want to see? Than bam! They are in your class, and you're stuck with them for a semester or two....great. The best way to deal with this, other than screaming at them in their face, is to just ignore them like they don't exist. And yes, you will make it through it. 
• Tripping/spilling stuff. We're klutzy at times. It happens. Sometimes, it can happen when we least expect. Or want it to for that matter. Wait, who wants to trip on their shoelace? I don't. The best way to deal with this is to simply brush it off. One thing I do after I trip in front of people is say "I guess that I failed hand-eye coordination." Making a joke out of it surely makes this, in addition to any kind of awkward situations better. 
• Having a person that's into you, and well you're not. I had this guy who won't leave me alone on a day to day basis. Thousands of texts, and if I didn't respond I would get more. This can get awkward. Especially if the person is your friend and you just don't want to hurt them. However, you're not feeling it. Dealing with this, I'd say that honesty is your best policy. One grain of salt is that you're going to need to have to break the truth to them nicely. That means think of their feelings and putting things in a nice way.
• Saying something completely stupid and making absolute no sense. Yes, this happens a lot to me. I often try to make a joke out of, but it's just the way that the mind works. No matter how smart you are, some stupidity is bound to come out of that mouth of yours eventually. We can't prevent that, but we can brush it off when it happens. 

These are just a few of my awkward experiences as a college student, and just as a wallflower. What are your awkward experiences? Enlighten me, I would love to hear them. 

I would like to dedicate this to my friend from computer science class, who created the "Awkward Corner" with me last year. Heidi this is for you!