Whenever I walk around my university (also known as the time when I’m perfecting my resting bitch face), I can’t help but think about the lives, backstories, and points of those walking around me. Where is he going? How did you do your hair? Is the reason why she’s wearing workout clothes because she worked out earlier or because she feels comfortable wearing what she’s wearing? Whoa, partner, why are you rushing? When was the last time he cried? (You know all the normal stuff people think about when they’re walking to class.) I also attempt to decipher the things that run through their individual heads. Are they worried about anything? If so, could they be worried about their current or lack of a relationship? Maybe they’re worried about their past. Could it be possible that they haven’t hugged their mothers in a long time? What if they don’t have their mother anymore? I realize this might sound vain but, would they find it weird that I’m trying to figure their lives out? Would they even think of me? (Yeah, I have a way of turning things into some existential BS real quickly.)
Evidently, I think a lot about baggage. For those of you who haven’t heard this term ever, the third available definition for baggage by Urban Dictionary is described as “an issue regarding a person's past that can affect their current disposition”. What bad thing happened in this person’s past that shaped the senile behaviors within them? This is the juicy stuff that develops a character on TV. Or, if you want a in real life example, once you learn about another person’s baggage you see them another way. You will probably find yourself justifying their actions by what you know about their past.
I’m no stranger to this term. I have my fair share of baggage. As much as I cover it up with my Boss Bitch attitude, there are metaphorical ghosts from my past that like to pop up and cause me to have cringe-attacks. Oh, I shouldn’t have done that! Oh, that could have been easily avoided! Oh, I should have known better! My past really does affect my judgement.
Earlier I hinted at my reflective tendencies while I walk around my university. (I need something to keep my mind off of how exasperated I feel after I walk-up the stairs. And, since it is publicly frowned upon to sing out loud, what else am I supposed to do?) While at uni, I don’t only see strangers. Sometimes I’m surrounded by people I know. Some are great friends that I love and appreciate. Some are former-strange people that I used to friend. (I have been known to be bitter.)
Whenever I see those people, anger fuels my veins. There are reasons to not be fans of them and they’re valid, by my calculations. My displeasure towards them isn’t solely constituted by the ways in which they’ve smitten me but, by the fact that they’re walking-proof of the kind of person that I used to be. (Yes, my biggest annoyance with my baggage(s) is a selfish one.) This baggage is a constant reminder of the embarrassing things that have happened to me.
It sucks to be bothered by baggage. I’m stuck and I don’t know what to do. There is no room to win against the ghosts of your past (A.K.A. baggage). You can’t express bitterness because they’ll have the upper-hand. You can’t swallow up your pride because there is too much bad blood to shed. You can’t avoid them because they have as much as a reason to be there as you do. This baggage is here to stay and haunt me, for the time being.
I guess all I could do, or all anyone who might be dealing with this issue can do is take Ted Mosby’s advice. As Ted so eloquently puts in season five of How I Met Your Mother, “Everyone’s got some baggage; it’s part of life. But like anything else, it’s easier when someone gives you a hand with it.”
If the best we can do to get over our baggage is seek people out, then that’s a pretty good reason to have a good crew behind you. Our loved ones will know how to handle the perfect balance of “treat yourself to a good rant” to “you’re better than this; get over it”.
The people that can help us deal with baggage don’t necessarily need to people that we know or even people. They can be found by the music that we listen to or, by playing with your pets or, by doing activities that make us happy, like sports (probably). A good album to listen to when you're dealing with stuff is Trouble Will Find Me. Then again itis one of my favorite albums and it will always have my seal of approval for everything.
<3
- Vianey
Vianey is a nineteen year old self-identified ranter who can be easily wooed by funny three-dimensional TV characters. When she is not watching sitcoms, bugging her pets, or dancing sporadically she posts every Friday on Kaleid-Eh-Scope.
Lately I've been thinking a lot about thesis statements...And I know that sounds like the opening sentence of a sad story called My Life As An Essay Writer or something, but let me explain. Thesis statements are absolutely CRUCIAL to an essay. Your thesis statement is the sentence that tells the reader what your essay is going to be about. It reveals whether you have a stance on something, what it is, and why you believe in what you do. It sets up an argument for your essay, a point. Without one, your essay is nothing more but lonely scattered thoughts and ideas without a home.
It can take FOREVER to come up with the perfect thesis for your essay. It’s a headache inducing process that has the potential to make you detest the essay writing process because it's been hours and all you have is this
But after you take a deep breath and come up with a sparkling thesis, the world automatically becomes your oyster and you are reminded that you are a magnificent creature of the Earth that will never stop leveling up. SO after that mouthful, I hope you have a clearer picture of the weight that thesis statements carry.
As a creative writing major, I am always writing essays. Because of my recent obsession with thesis statements, the same questions that I ask myself when trying to come up with a thesis, are now the questions I ask myself on a daily basis. What is my point? What am I trying to communicate to people? What message do I want to deliver? These are the big questions guys!!
Looking for a point to everything can be exhausting. But the truth is, things just feel better when they have a purpose. Having a point gives you a sense of control over whatever it is you are doing, even when you're not writing an essay. We are all walking around with our own LIFE thesis statements. These statements reflect our goals, endeavors: our purpose. We each have our own unique thesis embedded into us that determines what our next move will be and where we eventually want to get. Thesis statements don’t come easily. It can take years and years of trial and error to figure out who we are and what we want to do, let alone spell it out into a concise statement. Some of our favorite people are impossible to put into words, so I’m not trying to say that we should limit ourselves to be defined by one sentence. If anything, we should make sure our thesis statements stay fluid. Something I’ve learned from being a writing tutor is that the writing process is not linear. Essays have beginnings and ends on paper sure, but the process is circular. There are always things to improve, change, and if we want, we can even start all over. Life works that way too. We are born and then we die, but all the stuff in between is in flux. It’s a process that is never complete, where things are constantly changing. There is no such thing as reaching our final form or final draft. The best thing to do is embrace the chaotic cycle of self-discovery and before you know it you'll find the 'sis' to Spongebob's 'the'.
I, like a lot of people, look up to the wonderful Amy Poehler. She is a superb person to admire. Aside from starring in some of the greatest shows of all time, Parks and Recreation or Saturday Night Live, she excels at giving advice. This is more notably seen through her memoir-book “Yes Please”and her website Amy Poehler’s Smart Girls. Her book and her advice column on her website are jammed-packed with great and important advice on how to deal with life. One specific tip that she pointed out was, “…if a boy says something that isn’t funny, you don’t have to laugh.” I think about this a lot.
I’m pretty certain that we’ve all found ourselves in situations when a boy (or girl or whatever pronoun they identify with) said something that they thought was funny yet, you didn’t think it was as amusing as they hoped it had been. However, you found yourself laughing to ease the awkwardness from this exchange. Is laughing really our best option at being polite? Why can’t we be upfront about what we think?
I recently started to be more honest about the things I like and don’t. And, when I don’t laugh at jokes my well-meaning yet, offensive friends (or family) say, I get called a buzzkill, or killjoy, or party pooper. You get the jist.
My intentions are not to kill anyone’s buzz, or to infringe on anyone’s First Amendment right, they’re simply to be as honest as I can be to the people I love and to myself. That’s more or less it.
Sure, there was a time were some offensive jokes used to make me laugh so hard that I couldn’t breathe correctly afterwards. But now, I can’t decide if the reason why I don’t find them funny is because I am above this, or I’ve become more sensitive towards certain topics. I can’t provide answers nor do I require an answer. I guess this is just part of growing up.
<3
- Vianey
Vianey is a nineteen year old self-identified ranter who can be easily wooed by funny three-dimensional TV characters. When she is not watching sitcoms, bugging her pets, or dancing sporadically she posts every Friday on Kaleid-Eh-Scope.
Whenever there is a guy that I am
talking to it feels like every time, they like playing a game of how long it
will take me to crack before I text them back again because they haven’t
answered the previous text. Often this is what goes through my mind when I text
someone and they choose to watch all the episodes of friends and then text me
back:
1.“Oh My God. He Probably thinks I’m weird, I am
weird. Oh my gosh, Shaking my head.”
2.“He’s probably busy”
3.“He found someone better.”
4.“I think I might have sounded to clingy”
5.“Fuck. I scared him off, again”
6.“He’s hot and he knows that, so he wants someone
with a better face, why must I have this face?”
7.“Obviously he lost his phone or got in a fight defending my honor."
Ultimately there are so many excuses
I could come up with to say to myself but sometimes let’s get it straight: He’s
just not that into you or he IS busy or he is human and he doesn’t know what to
say/do. Guys have lives and sometimes those lives get in the way of texting and
interrupt your very important conversation about hibernating bears (I was so
nervous that someone would stop talking to me once, I did this, don’t judge
me.) Sometimes it’s not that they are being mean and planning on making you
want to tie a noose over your neck, it’s just that they really have something
to do or they have something on their mind. When a person comes into your life
and you end up coming into theirs for the first time, it is true, the first
thing we usually do is text.
What we often forget is the fact
that we haven’t been in their lives forever so who the hell knows what they’ve
gone through or what they’re still going through, what classes their taking,
what job they have, what marks a past relationship may have left on them? We
don’t know and so therefore we can’t or at least we shouldn’t worry ourselves
and get obsessive over why they might be taking a little or a long while to
text us back. Go on with your life, don’t rush anything, especially a potential
relationship. Good things take time and you know this because when a boy or
girl finally texts you back, you get this feeling like you want to dance naked
at a supermarket. It’ll be okay, hang in there baby.
Now, we have to acknowledge that
there will be those times when a guy doesn’t text you back because he doesn’t
want to. I know, none of us want to face this fact because none of us are not
fabulous. We will always be fabulous but sometimes are fabulousness is not
meant for the person of our interest at specific point of time. You have to be
strong, you have to swallow your tears back and move on because honey it is not
worth your time. This is just one guy out of the sea of guys that are out
there. Don’t mistake yourself thinking that this guy might be the one, you’re
only texting, geez. Be confident in yourself and know that you deserve
happiness and you deserve someone who wants to talk to you and will talk to
you. You deserve the world, we all do.
Last but not least, have you ever
thought about the fact that he might be wondering what to say to you because he
feels not good at communicating and that he’ll fuck it up. Give him time, he
wants to impress you, he might even feel intimidated. Ultimately a guy will
text you back if he wants to and you’ll text him back if you want to. Establish
what you want, set your standards and don’t fret and try your best to not be a
clingy bitch. It’ll happen if it is supposed to happen. Stay Flawless.
As we grow older, no matter what stage of our lives we may be in, time becomes a precious thing. Whether the word 'time' makes you think of your tight schedule, sparks good memories, or drives you to ponder on your future, time makes itself known to us in many ways.
I know that as I get closer to hitting the big 2-0, I feel compelled to hold on as tight as I can to my teen years. I also know not much will change just because I'll soon identify myself by a different number, but I can't help but feel caught between the nostalgic pull of my past and the call of an unfamiliar voice from my future. Being caught in this tug-of-war of time can be hard to put into words. It's a myriad of magical memories, could haves, should haves, what if's, and "what will be's".
The songs I've shared today know how to articulate the bitter and sweet emotions that overwhelm us when we think about time. I hope they help you relish in the moment and pause time only if for a second.
Find some of my fav lines from each song while you listen:
1. We'll laugh until our ribs get tired
2. That we are fucking up our lives
but we are having a good time
3. Tryin' to find the part of me my friends all miss
4. But time betrays me & I get older one more year
5. When I can hardly walk & my hair falling out, we'll still stay up till morning
6. If we're both not married by 25, I hope that there's some childish spark still alive
7. I play the number's game to find a way to say that life has just begun
8. I wanna shine on in the hearts of men, I want a meaning...
On Christmas day of 2013, I discovered the gem that is Portlandia. Portlandia is an IFC (Independent Film Channel) sketch-comedy show that features the comedic brilliance of Carrie Brownstein and Fred Armisen as multiple characters that coexist in the cool alternative land of Portland, Oregon. From the very first episode I was hooked. Who knew that the dream of the ‘90s is alive in Portland? This show uses a variety of running gags and unconventional original characters to poke fun of the various personalities that dwell in Portland. One of the funniest running gags is that whenever a Portland local is asked a question they shrug and nod their heads without answering the question. In addition to it being a Portland original, it has it share of various and talented guest stars like Bill Hader, Johnny Marr, Steve Buscemi, even Roseanne Barr has been in the mix. It is evident that Portlandia kinda has it all.
Fred and Carrie portray some of my favorite exaggerations of people. From the hilarious antics of the Feminist bookstore owners of “Women and Women First”, Candace and Toni (The Poni), to the untraditional relationship of Spyke and Iris, this show marches to the beat of its own drum. I’ve never seen anything like it and I don’t think it could ever be matched with any show right now. As a never overrated title, I’d love to share some of my favorite sketches with you all.
Dream of the 90s
The sketch to kick off the rest of the series (and to never leave our hearts). Upbeat, a quick look of the Portland citizens, and nostalgia. It’s the dream! (Season 1, Episode 1)
Blunderbuss
I couldn’t stop laughing the first time I watched this. Describing it is not enough, you have to watch it! (Season 1, Episode 5)
One Party At A Time
The screwed-over millennials need to find the voice of their generation. Unluckily, they’re too busy dancing to Bot Dylan to actually mobilize any movement. (Season 3, Episode 2)
Put a Bird On It
Probably the most iconic sketch from Portlandia. Apparently, putting a bird on it is an art form. (Season 1, Episode 2)
Cool Wedding
Are you too cool to have a stereotypical wedding? Spyke and Iris are. They don’t believe in the institution. They would rather have a giant sign out detailing the divorce statistics. Now that I have your attention, you should check out this sketch. (Season 2, Episode 3)
Banana Daiquiri
A very infectious song about the relationship between a man and a woman featuring Maya Rudolph. (Season 4, Episode 6)
Gay Wedding
The greatest plot twist. (Season 3, Episode 7)
Grover
These parents’ attempt to get their son into a very prestigious pre-school is the sketch that inspired the name of my kitty. Unlike my cat, this Grover came to teach us about the Icarus myth, quotes Barack Obama, and his favorite color is…red. (Season 2, Episode 4)
(Picture of my kitty, Grover)
This isn't it. You can watch Portlandia (seasons one through four) now on Netflix.
If you want to be up to date, IFC is currently showing the fifth season of Portlandia on Thursdays at 8 P.M. This season’s main focus is to develop the stories of their original characters such as exploring the origins of the feminist book store owners, the next step in Nina’s and Lance’s relationship, and Peter's illness.
Hoping you guys will tune in,
- Vianey
Vianey is a nineteen year old self-identified ranter who can be easily wooed by funny three dimensional TV characters. When she is not watching sitcoms, confiding in her pets, or dancing sporadically. She posts every Friday on "Kaleid-Eh-Scope".
