Take a breath, hold it in.

" I want adventure in the great wide somewhere, I want it more than I can tell. and for once it might be grand, to have someone understand. I want so much more than they've got planned"--Belle, Beauty & The Beast.

^This quote embodies my current thought process. Life is full of so much; full of opportunities, full of mistakes, full of energy. When asked what you want out of life, most people would say some version of success, whether it is money, love, comfort. However I don't see people living just to live, to be full of life.

Everywhere I go I see beauty of life and the people in this world. Yes I become a cynic at times because this world is full of evil deceit and people just looking to get ahead, but there is good somewhere right?

Did you ever breathe in and just feel the energy around you? Pardon me for mixing Disney movies at the moment, but I am on a kick. Take Belle's sense of adventure, with Pocahontas's love for nature and life and create an attitude to have everyday. Now as a Sociology major and just finishing my gender midterm, let me appeal to the men as well because I know this seems "girly". You can have adventure too, not for "bringing home the bacon" either. Forget realistic, forget how the world tells you to hold yourself down... anything is possible.

Of course Belle's quote deals with the adventure of love, someone to understand her, but it is Disney what do you expect... independence? Ha.

Adventure of love would be wonderful, but that is harder to come by. Now adventure of life, that is something that can be found every day, in each breath we take. Now... for the main point here..

CHALLENGE: Go on an adventure. I am not saying to some unknown land or anything extreme. My friends and I go on adventures daily. Preferably a beautiful nature setting. Walk around a wooded path or a park and watch the way the sun glistens off of the leaves. Last week my friend and I went to a field, played music, and danced around. Anything will do.
ONE CONDITION-- this is where it gets tricky but I know you all can do it! Make sure you are truly and blissfully happy for one moment on this adventure, whether it's the music you are playing or just the way the river moves downstream... let yourself fill up with happiness to where you cannot hold back a smile. Think it is impossible to be that fulfilled with no material items? Think again, I do it daily =). Let LIFE fill you, let the energy of true happiness take over... and do something more.

Time to open up, open up wide.

Lately I have realized certain debates are completely futile. When debating with people who already are completely arrogant and continue to fuel their insecurities with the "I am older, wiser, better" phrase that is surely ringing in their head 24/7, the many conversations seem to have no end until the arrogance builds up to anger and they leave the conversation hot headed.

However, insecurity is the root of the problem. We all have them, insecure about our looks, intelligence, experience. Always asking questions like, " am I creative enough to do this?" "Am I not good enough because I didn't go to college?"

Insecurity, the word almost makes you automatically search for your own flaws. Sometimes they can make you shut down, fight back against it. You are insecure about how your life turned out, you feel inadequate so you always have to be right to people you see "below" you. Bullies when you are little are just projecting insecurities, that's what you always hear right? "Oh sweetie they are just insecure and need to pick on people to make themselves feel better".

We all have them, some people can deal with them in healthy ways, others can't. When people project their insecurities onto others, as frustrating as it is, I can't help but to pity them. They cannot help themselves, and are so insecure that they treat people poorly or act out to where they look almost idiotic. Challenge time =)


CHALLENGE: You can do one of two things this time. Take on your insecurity, feel bad about your look? Do something healthy for yourself, go for a run, get a facial, dance around your house (one of my personal favorites). If it's something more personal, research something, try to learn something new, you can just stand in the mirror and list all of your positives. I find when I get upset about myself, I list all of my good things and you realize "Hey, I guess I am pretty awesome." and YOU ARE AWESOME. we all have good points.

CHALLENGE NUMBER TWO: If you don't feel quite ready to take on your insecurity, or are still in a denial phase of not having any, be open-minded. The next time you lash out, or someone lashes out at you, try to think of why you, or that person, are really doing it. Let your mind stay open wide and allow new perspectives and ideas to come into your mind, see people for why they act certain ways rather than assuming "oh they are just ignorant".

YOU CAN DO IT! DON'T FORGET ALL OF THE WONDERFUL THINGS ABOUT YOU!


Peace. Love. Respect. <3

F.I.N.A.L.S- eff I never actually learned this stuff.

So it is that time, finals. oh the joy of being a college student. One last crazy weekend followed by 24 hour quiet hours, sleepless nights, and junk food filled with caffeine and sugar to keep you focused on studying. Oh, and if you are bad at tests, you are d-o-n-e.

I have the joy of taking three lovely finals at the end of this semester:

1. Archaeology of Ancient Greece & Rome ( the class you thought would be interesting but actually makes you think of tossing yourself in front of a bus).

2. Introduction to Sociology (the class that is fun to be in and not too hard, but still covers a lot of information).

3. Italian II ( the class that decided not to have a midterm so you are forced to remember months of new conjugations and structure and when to use them in one test).


This is my weekend. Full of note cards, highlighters, headaches, & confusion. Where one final I have no idea what to study because the teacher makes no sense and everyone gets C's. Two where I am focusing on keeping my A's, and one class that did not require a final (Dance). I do not accept anything lower than a B, and even B's tend to get on my nerves. So these can make or break me. Which brings me to the challenge you all, I am sureeee, are wondering about.

Challenge: RELAX. Take twenty minutes, a few hours, a whole day, and relax. Calm yourself in every way possible. Go somewhere calming. Shut off the lights, light a candle or spray a soothing scent, take a bath. BREATHE. Stress can rule over people constantly and cause way more problems then the problem you are stressing about in the first place; trust me, I know.

so take some time, cleansing deep breaths, and refresh yourself!

Fun Fact.

Hello again. Something I noticed is I have a bit of, well a catch phrase I guess you could say. I love using the phrase "fun fact"=) Why do I like this you ask? Well it is learning, learning can be fun. Now I do not mean I love sitting through boring lectures and all that, but when I am interested about something I like to learn. It can be very intriguing. So since you are reading, I will reward YOU with some fun facts of my own. =)

Fun facts:
-I go to Drew University which is one of the top 5 most haunted campuses in the states. I believe we are number three.
-Part of the underground railroad is directly under this campus, my friend saw part of the tunnel!
- You know the big fuss about Britney's new single? If you seek Amy? Well the dirty innuendo is originally done by a band called April Wine, an 80's band and there song titled " If you see Kay"

Now don't you feel smarter? haha Thought so. The point is, that in college I see a lot of people just getting by so they can get out and make money. People use to go to college to learn, to gain experiences and knowledge, but economic values washed those old ones away. In a day in the life of a freshman college student I see more students worried about what makes them money, and taking classes just to get it out of the way, rather than having love for something and wanting to know all about it. People ask me what I want to do, I want to do something I love. Sure, I would like to make a comfortable living, but I don't need anything in excess. Challenge time!

Challenge: Learn a fun fact. Learn A BUNCH of them! Take an interest in something, find out the answer to some bizarre question that you have always secretly wondered about. You can leave any fun facts you find in comments along with your reactions too if you would like! I love learning more, and as people who are blessed to live in such a strange and maginificent place like this planet, with all its culture and mystery, we should all want to learn something. So go off and explore!!


Peace. Love. Respect. <3

"Gotta be BIGGG AND LOUDDDD" =)

For those of you who do not know, that title is from the movie Cats Don't Dance, which is a cartoon and a very good movie!

Also, there is a change to my blog, did you notice? Did ya? I changed the title appropriately to "A day in the life..." This segment of my life can be known as "A day in the life of a college student".

Okay, so now for the point of this. BIG AND LOUD. BOLD. IN YOUR FACE. Without going overboard, these are usually seen as positive qualities in a person. Did you ever notice people around you can greatly effect your boldness level. My family is a bunch of Italians, enough said. However, on top of that, I have been dancing since I was three years old, which put me out there. Recently though, my boldness level seems to have dropped. Now I am still not what you would call a shy person, but for me, it has dropped a great deal.

My reasoning behind this is I put my faith in someone else, and let them make me feel bad about myself. It is amazing how someone who can put you up so high, is the same person who can make you fall as low as you can.

Faith in yourself is key. If you are awesome, KNOW IT, OWN IT. I am not exactly a model. 5'3 (which is considered tall in my family) with an athletic build and curves. But if I didn't tell you I wasn't awesome I would be lying. =) I am pretty sure we all are the best person we can be, if we thought we were not good people we would change that. There are exceptions to the rule, but the point here is confidence. For any of you who have read my Mama's posts (Touch'd) , confidence is sexy.

Okay, this is a short post, but the point of this one is the challenge itself. Many of my challenges I have done I feel are not as difficult for me, they are just how I live. This one however, is going to be more difficult.

CHALLENGE: take a risk. Not an itty bitty tiny one. Do something you normally would not do based on the pure fact that you are too nervous or shy to do it. Go up to that guy or girl, make that big proposal to your boss, dye your hair that crazy color you always wanted. It is something personal, and I know there are times we all look back and say "man, I wish I just did it." So DO IT. Like Nike says =).


Peace. Love. Respect. <3

Spread the LOVE<3

This post isn't going to be some big long story followed by my challenge.

Something short:

A lot of the time we don't realize what we have until it is gone. Some people are able to walk away from something they care about because of their pride and other stifling qualities. Love is in everyone's lives, whether it is family, a significant other, friends, or even pets. I find people get so wrapped up in so many materialistic and worldly things, that they lose track of what they love, what is truly important. I believe that as long as you have some type of love in your life, and it can stay strong, you can always make a bad day better. I would trade all of my material possessions to have a life of strong love with my family, friends, and eventually "the one". So your challenge today is something you should continue to do as much as you possibly can.

Challenge: Show someone how much you love them. Whether it is someone in your life you have taken for granted, someone who could use a little extra boost and knows that you are there for him/her, or someone you want to do something extra special for. Take a decent amount of time (just saying I love you or texting it does not count) and do something to show it. Actions speak louder than words, and if people followed this lesson maybe certain days won't hurt so bad.



Peace. Love. Respect. <3

a true straight-shooter

Have you ever noticed you never hear the exact advice twice? As much as I would like to help people with their problems, before I do I get every detail I can... Details, those tiny miniscule things that can change an entire perspective of a problem. Figuring out people from their own truths and lies is probably one of the most complicated scenarios life has to offer. Yet, that questioning of others' motives and true feelings, creates all the relationships we as humans have.

I personally try to never lie. I know, it sounds cliche, and you are thinking "yea right everyone lies." You are probably right. When my friend is upset and her cheeks are all puffy, I will tell her she is still as gorgeous as ever so she can get up and feel better. However, when it comes to emotions, to feelings about something, I never lie. To many people I am known as incredibly blunt, though I do it with a sincere tone and do not ever mean to offend or hurt someone. If you do something that bothers me or hurt me, I won't go tell someone else, but you will know and I will explain myself to my best ability.

I made one of my best friends that way, I did not like her, she knew it. However she told everyone that I was "classy" because she knew how I felt before the whole school, and I never said anything catty or "bitchy", I simply stated facts that she did, and why they bothered me. (one of those complicated friends with the same people , boyfriend cheated on me with her things). We realized it was childish and became friends, and that is something I guarantee you do not see every day. Especially for young teens.

Every now and then when I post, I will present my readers with a challenge. Last time was to try to live with the carefree loving of a child. This one, go an entire week without lying. If that is too much start off at a day. Just because you are honest does not mean you have to be rude either.

I have recently been hurt incredibly by someone I cannot figure out due to multiple lies and contradictory actions. If we each started to be more honest and straightforward, maybe that trait would start to pass down. Children see lying constantly and are bred for it. We can make a difference.



Peace, Love, & Koalas<3

Daydreaming

As children we are told to use our imagination, creativity, and dreams to guide us. Playtime, you remember don't you? Being a pirate or a doctor or anything you wanted, just dreaming about adventure and excitement.

But it seems as we all enter a certain age, where dreaming is cut off and logic takes over. As I get further along the path of adulthood I realize how badly I wish I could change this new world. It is about tangible objects, not about loving or caring, it's about money and self preservation. My father use to tell me as a child that I was more excited about big boxes than the toys inside them. Toys have a function, this is what is it, this is how you use it, go. Not the box though, it could be anything. I would cut out holes in it for a house, a robot, car, spaceship, boat, cave. You can look at the Rugrats episode when Tommy's father buys him a Kiddy Karnival for reference.

I find that simpler things are more entertaining, something that lets the mind wander, lets it breathe and stretch the imagination. Sure, there are inventors and writers and such, but lets face it, most of us end up doing the same thing every day, and that imagination drifts as we transform into adults.

I would like to be a child forever, and keep using my imagination. I am going on 19 years old, and I still think some of the most exciting times I have are when I am pretending and imagining and just playing, like a child. I will get up in my dorm and dance and sing. I love walking around the campus on nice days, listening to music, maybe singing, and letting my mind wander, I can almost see the fake creatures I dream up running alongside me. Or maybe I am apart of a great scene and the spotlight is on me. Either way, being a kid beats it any day.

Think about if children ran the world, it would be much easier don't you think? "This country hurt my feelings, apologize, okay?, now go play together." Children don't have prejudice and stereotypes, until adults build them in and say, "We'll that is how it is sweetie" We have all heard it getting older. If people were just able to keep that childlike mentality, things could be easier. Children don't use complicated versions of things, basic respect runs their lives. Share, play nice, and help each other.

I will keep this blog short, but I challenge anyone reading this to bring their kid out one day. Whether you are alone at home, or bored in the office, sit and let your mind daydream, not about material possessions like becoming a millionaire, but about true happiness. Dance around your house and act like a star. Or just sit and imagine something you haven't since you were a child, if it helps, take out some toys. You are never too old to imagine. =)



Peace, Love, & Koalas.

Internal Dreams

So, I haven't written since last year. Wow, strange to say isn't it. I will be 19 this summer, which means I am almost 20, TWO DECADES! Time flies. I still remember having my little adventures when I was little. Adventures are bigger and much more intense nowadays. As a freshman I already feel the pressure of getting a perfect 4.0 and choosing my major that will determine the rest of my entire life! It all hits me at once sometimes.

I don't want to have a job, or even a career. I want to say I fulfill my dreams everyday, to keep my passion burning strong. I love writing, and though blogs are not exactly my forte', my stories keep me going. Though with this busy college life, stories have been on hold. I am a writer and performer, and that reflects my newest aspiration in life. Opening a studio maybe?

Something small and local. Not for creating famous stars and making millions of dollars, but to make people happy. I am a dancer and singer and I love it more than anything. I have not been blessed with the incredibly tall tiny boned body of a ballerina. Hip hop and contemporary is more my style, but even at my best, I am no Mia Michaels. (One of my favorite choreographers) Singing is the same thing, I have a decent voice, and people like to hear me sing. However, I am no Whitney.

For me it is all about passion, getting up on stage or wherever the performance is, and singing or dancing my heart out. I feel the energy reverberating off of the crowd. I will have knots in my stomach and feel like I want to just scream from butterflies, but the second that first note sounds it goes away. I am in a zone and just live every emotion through each beat or syllable. The feeling is indescribable and is the best feeling in the world, the only time I am truly happy.

I want to give people that feeling. Put on a few small shows throughout the year, maybe one big one. Let everyone live out their dreams. Sure I probably have the talent and stage presence to maybe make a career out of it, but I would want to stick to small gigs and such. Then just teach and help out others, higher a few voice instructors for singing and maybe one or two people to help me out with the dancing.

I helped my friend the other day in my dance class. She struggled with some of the moves and I worked with her to get them right. The look she got on her face when I was done was amazing, and I was so excited to help her. I would love to help whoever I can.


So that is my current dream, give it a few days. Might change. =) My passion stays strong but exerts in different directions constantly.


Peace, Love, & Koalas<3