I've been bad and haven't updated this in a while. When I started this blog I've made it my goal to write a new post at least once a week; more if I felt inspired to write about something in particular. The reason I haven't been doing that for a while is that I wasn't inspired to write. My life has been going through the same routine and my creativity has dwindled because of it. I didn't want to post something on here that would be garbage because I didn't put my passion into it, but merely to fulfill a quota I set up. But something that I have become passionate about besides traveling and studying abroad, that has inspired my life in a different way is fashion.

Fashion has always been something that I have liked. In high school I got really into the beauty community on YouTube. I loved watching Juicystar07 do her makeup and show the clothes she bought in her haul videos. As I got older, I still liked watching these videos. However, I didn't see the necessity to watch as many makeup videos. Makeup was something that I didn't really wear as much as these girls on YouTube. I didn't see the need to put on a full face of makeup every single day. That doesn't mean I don't like and use makeup, I do and am a strong believer of using it to bring out your natural features. But I wanted to be my natural self and didn't see makeup as a way to express myself.

I then started watching fashion videos, in particular Cutiepiemarzia's. There was something different about watching fashion instead of makeup. Fashion seemed more creative and natural. These people showed how they can take clothing that anyone can buy and use it to express their personalities. I still watch these videos now and I didn't realize why I continued to do so. I took me a while to realize that fashion is important to me. I see these videos as inspiration on not only what to wear, but how to wear something that I already own and use it to express myself. Marzia in particular has showed me that you don't necessarily need to follow trends, but to know what your style is and be comfortable expressing who are through your clothes.

This quarter I decided to take LJ103 Fashion and Celebrity. It fit in my schedule and was a class I needed for my major. Honestly, I didn't know if I would like it or not. I never considered myself a fashionable person and had no interest in celebrities. But surprisingly, this has became my favorite class this quarter. I originally though that this class was going to focus on how to be fashionable and physical aesthetics. But it has to deal more with reading about fashion and what the industry really is. The class has allowed me to think about something that affects us every single day. I find it fascinating.

Fashion has always been a part of my life one way or another. But now is the time that I'm realizing that perhaps it's something that I should pursue. And although I may not know as much as other people in regards to fashion and style, this is something that I am willing to learn more about. Although I might encounter obstacles along the way, I won't let others discourage me and will continue to pursue this new dream of mine. At the moment I want to pursue fashion journalism and am currently in the process of becoming an intern for an online fashion publication. This is something I've become very passionate about and I'm excited to see where it will go.

As a journalist major I have to read a lot of books in a short amount of time for my classes. Sometimes these books are really interesting and at other times they are really boring. One book that I finished yesterday for my Fashion and Celebrity class was Overdressed: The Shockingly High Cost To Cheap Fashion by Elizabeth Cline. Even though I have no idea about fashion and would have never read this book if I had chosen to, Cline does an excellent job at making us see cheap fashion as what it really is instead of finding good deals at Forever 21 and H&M.

I know I'm not a fashionable person at all. I usually just shop at Goodwill because it's cheap or American Apparel sales on Hautelook.com because they make their clothes in LA and its good quality. I have no set of style, I just wear what I think looks cool. I have a lot of clothes but no style to justify having those clothes.

So what justifies having so much clothes? Why do we feel we are making good deals when buying cheap fashion. Yet, when we look in our closets we tell our selves "I have nothing to wear".

Well it's because we are a consumerist nation. We buy a cheaply made shirt from Forever 21 for $5 thinking we've made an amazing deal. But that shirt is so poorly made with low quality materials that it will last about maybe five washes. Once it's no longer suitable to wear or in trend we throw it away instead of trying to fix it. We find it more easy to buy clothes than fixing what we already own because that's what we think is the normal thing to do. Well it's not. We have made clothing disposable. Clothing should be just like any other part of our lives. We invest lots of money for a good laptop or electronic because we want something good that will give us the best outcome. Yet, we don't invest in our clothing. We don't see the justification to spend more that $30 on a shirt that will last us for such a long time, which is very sad.

Cline puts so much reporting and investigation into this book. She personally goes to countries like China, Bangladesh, and the Dominican Republic to visits sweatshops. She has so many second voices in the story that gives the book so much more credibility. She presents so many ideas and knowledge about fashion in a manner that does not seem like propaganda. By making herself a character in her work, she makes it relatable because like all of us, she thought it was good that she could go to Target and buy cheap clothing. But at the end of this book she realizes how wrong that is. She stops buying from there and moves onto buying from local designers.

This book has made me reexamine my wardrobe and the way I see fashion today. Although I am a thrifter, I have noticed that the majority of clothes that come into Goodwill are from H&M and F21. Thrift stores have stopped becoming places in which one goes into to find something vintage and original. I've also noticed I have no style. There are so many things I would wear if certain things were changed in the clothing that I already own. Yet, I do nothing about it and continue to wear them even though I could get them fixed. I've always thought fashion wasn't important, but after reading this I've realized it is because it affects us every single day. It's made me look and think about something I've never bothered to think about. I've also decided that I am going to learn how to sew and stop buying cheap fashion. It's more worth it to invest in pieces that I really like that are made from good materials because they will last so much more in the long run.

I barley touched the surface of this book. Cline does a very good job at looking at specific things in cheap fashion and really goes in depth. I've only talked about things that I found interesting and what I've taken from reading this. If you are interested in fashion or just want to be more knowledgeable about our world and how clothing affects us every single day, then I highly recommend for you to read this book.

Game of Thrones aired again tonight on HBO after a year since the last episode. A year of anticipation, waiting to see what will happen in Westeros after the deaths of Robb and Catelyn Stark. So far, it hasn't disappointed.

Now I've read the first three books, so I know what will happen at the end of this season. I know who dies, who lives, and what will happen to each house. And let me tell you, it's going to be really good. Yet, this has its downsides for me. I know what will happen, so there will be no surprises for me, like there were for so many of you last season in the "Red Wedding". But like always, TV shows and movies are never true to the original. It will be interesting to see the changes the writers decided to make this season and if the major events are as epic as Martin wrote them out to be. But in the end, I know I will always be making comparisons in my head between the two. But don't worry I won't spoil anything that will happen in the season.

So far this episode was fine. I was expecting more like I always do. But especially for this season, just because this is when a lot of interesting things will happen. Besides season one, the other seasons have started off slow as well in order to create background for the really interesting stuff to come. For that reason, this episode isn't bad. There were things that I particularly liked and stuff I didn't like.

Although most of the important characters made an appearance tonight, I didn't seem to care that much about all of them. There were only three that were actually very interesting. The other's were just there and their characters will have interesting events later. But for now, Cersei's problems and her anger towards Jamie seem irrelevant. Deanery's didn't do much with her army, but her dragons did grow really big. Sansa didn't say or do much either. And Tyrion, well his moment will come.

I'm very excited to see Oberyn Martell in this. He was one of my favorite characters in the third book. The love he has for his sister is amazing and what he will be willing to do for her honor later on is astounding. But I'm not sure I entirely like the way he appears when we first meet him. I know he sleeps around a lot. He has three bastard daughters who actually have positions of authority in the fourth book, but the book never makes him seem like a man desperate to sleep with women. And yes I understand this isn't the book, but he's a great character who will add so much to the plot of the story. Presenting him like that isn't making him seem that way.

Jon Snow's my favorite in the book. But I loved the way he behaved in this episode. Something about him knowing he broke his vows and being sassy about it towards those who are trying to kill him, is making him one of my favorites in the show. The way he shows authority to those men who obviously have a higher authority than him, yet isn't afraid to do so, demonstrates he's starting to become the man he's wanted to be since season one. He's becoming like Robb, yet I think he will be better than Robb. He's a Stark after all.

I loved the ending. If you know me, you know how much I love fighting scenes and blood in combat. Seeing the Hound and Arya fight those guys was really nice to see. You can see the Hound isn't so bad after all and Arya's taking action on those who've hurt people she's cared about. In the end when he gives her the horse, that's the moment you see they're on the same team. They both don't care about the King or the war. They're just trying to survive and are using each other in order to do so. I love it.

The writers have included small details in the story that may not seem like anything, but will play an important role in the progression of the season. Pigeon pig? The meal Shae gives Sansa to eat; if you've read the book you know exactly what I'm talking about. Oh you clever writers.

I will continue to be an avid watcher throughout the rest of the season. I love Game of Thrones and am exited to see the story I know come to life and be portrayed the way I know it can be.

Incredible series, end of an era they said it was. Words like these are used to describe something epic and worthy of such praise. The finale episode of How I Met Your Mother that ended this Monday did not live up to that praise.

Being a huge fan of the show, seeing over 200 episodes and all 9 seasons, I was really looking forward to seeing how one of my favorite shows would end. I knew it would be an emotional night and I had really high hopes for an amazing ending. I was sadly disappointed and I would say it was one of the worst finales a series could have. Now before I proceed and talk about the finale be aware that this will contain spoilers. But since your reading this you've probably already seen it.

For one the show was called "How I Met Your Mother", so the last episode should have focused and revealed on how Ted finally met the mother. Although this did happen for a short couple of minutes, the episode was really about Robin, lonely and finally realizing that she was suppose to end up with Ted. Now don't get me wrong I love Robin. If it were up to me I would love to be like Robin, working at a news station and traveling the world for it. I would love my future to be like that. Although I love her, I just didn't see a reason to bring back a love interest that had ended Season 3. The previous episode gave us all a good lesson that relationships have an expiration date when Ted said he didn't feel the same about Robin. Feelings aren't always the same in the future and good indicators that we as people move on with our lives. At this point, both Robin and Ted had moved on. She married Barney and Ted found the mother and had 2 children with her. The finale was not the moment for her to realize this after a decade.


What was the point of the last season. The whole season focused on Robin and Barney's wedding. Yet these two characters got divorced in the last episode. Why waste so much time on an event that was meant to be monumental only to crumble after 3 years? I thought Robin and Barney were right for each other. The way in which he proposed to her and all the effort he put into it really showed that he deserved her. He fought for her and did what Ted couldn't all those years. But what was the point, if thorough all that Robin would always end up with Ted.

Why create a mother at all? The mom never comes out until the final season; and when she does it's only for brief moments. My favorite episode was "How Your Mother Met Me", it made me really fall for the mother and sympathize for her. She like many of us had loved someone and found it hard to truly let go. She resonated with a lot of people and she appeared as a person worthy for Ted to have waited so long for. Yet in the last episode we weren't allowed to feel anything for her. We didn't even know how she died and didn't feel sad when it happened. We mostly ended up feeling bad for Robin. So why have her in the story at all if she isn't important in the end?

The best part of the whole thing was when Barney met his daughter Ellie. At one point in the episode he said that he wasn't the type of guy who sees a woman and knows that she is the love of his life and would do anything for her. But when he meets his daughter, he tells her those exact words. It was really heartwarming to see how Barney as a character has evolved since the beginning. You have this guy who's persona is sleeping with women and finding new ways in order to do so. But when he meets his daughter, he realizes that there is someone out there worth changing for. This seen made me cry, the only time I actually did.

The show should have been called "How I Met Your Step-Mother" because the whole point of the show really wasn't how Ted met the mother. It was more like how he loved Robin all the time, met the mother, fell in love with her, had kids with her that Robin couldn't have with him, and then conveniently died after she gave Ted everything he wanted while still ending up with Robin in the end. Bullshit, complete and utter bullshit.


Someone had uploaded an alternative ending for the show that I will link here. Personally, this was how the show should have ended. It was simple and a way to really end an amazing series.The show touched so many people. Through the frustration, laugh, and tears, this ending made everything worth it because Ted's journey and the show all led up to this moment. Making us see that somethings are truly worth waiting for; which was something that the original lacked.

Break up's are hard, very hard. Those of you who have never had a bad break up, I'm jealous. By saying that, I don't want to imply that my break up was bad. It was, but it was better than most I've had. I still had my heart broke; but it was better in that I didn't spend much time being depressed and quickly started realizing that this wasn't the end of the world. I started to see this as an opportunity to better myself. Now I didn't necessarily feel that there was something wrong with me. But at the time there wasn't anything good about me either.

When I came back from New Zealand, I had this idea in my head that I was going to start working on my writing career again. My second year of college I had joined my campus' newspaper, I was an intern for the club I was in, and I worked at the Rec center at my school. I was very involved in school and was doing very well academically. So when I came back I thought that I would continue what I did last year, write and earn some extra money. But I was wrong. This past quarter I can honestly say has been one of the worst I've ever had. I had stopped writing and wasn't trying to pursue it again. I stopped going to work and my grades suffered. This was all because I was putting all my time and energy into my relationship. Having a long distance relationship is hard, it really is. If it was easy, everyone would do it. I felt I had to put all I could into the relationship in order to make it work. The bad part about this was that I wasn't giving myself time to grow, to apply all the skills and knowledge I've learned from going abroad into my life and work.

But now that I am no longer in that relationship, I have the time to really better myself and make myself the person that I know I can be. And I'm not going to lie, I am still sad about my breakup. I loved him very much and still do. But that doesn't mean I need to sulk in my sadness. I don't need to continue and feel that I did something wrong or that he did as well. Now that it's over I can really analyze myself as a person and realize my faults and better myself. For this reason, I can say this is probably the first time where a breakup has been good, good at allowing me to see that I need self improvement.

There area a number of things that have contributed to this realization.

In my spare time I like to read articles about travel, studying abroad, and self improvement. Today I randomly stumbled upon a self-improvement one. When I read the title I didn't think I would get a lot out of it, I mean it was called "The Guide to Strong Boundaries". I didn't know what "boundaries" meant so I decided I should give it a try and now I'm writing this post as a reflection to what I've read.

I don't want to give a summary of what the article said so I am going to include it here.

I saw myself in a lot of the points this made and made me realize a lot of my faults. I am needy, even if I hate to admit it, I am. I'm not as bad as I think other people are. But I was asking a lot from my ex-boyfriend. I wanted us to talk all the time and that was not okay. My needs made me dependent. I never realized it but I am a dependent person especially around my family. I always had to ask permission to do what I wanted to do from my parents and I still do it now. I still find myself asking them on decisions I should make. And I did the same thing in my relationship, I always asked for permission and needed external approval. My needs and dependence are reflections that I have weak boundaries.

I also have a tendency to want to "save" peoples problems. I tried to "fix" my ex-boyfriend. I didn't realize I was doing it because I felt I thought I was just trying to be a good girlfriend and friend in fixing his problems. But in reality I felt my good actions would make me receive love and appreciation. But I can't keep fixing people, it's not my job to do that. If my ex-boyfriend really wanted to get better he would fix his problems on his own.

I have weak boundaries and I wouldn't have realized it now if I hadn't stumbled upon that article. I like reading articles about travel and life because they are universal and something everyone can relate to. Now I don't think we should believe and follow everything we read. We should be objective and see things that work for us and what doesn't. For this article I saw what my faults are, but it's up to me to change myself in the way I see most fitting.

The thing I got the most out of this was that I realized I'm not ready to be in a relationship. I can't be with someone if I am dependent of them. So although I am sad about my breakup, I wasn't ready to be in it. The only thing I can do now is try to be an independent person and establish myself on my own before I can be with someone else.

Ever since I've gotten back from studying abroad, I've had a desire to leave. Not necessarily leave the United States or California, because this is my home and I'm the person I am because of where I was raised. But I've just had the urge to go out and explore and see things that I've never seen before. The only other state that I've been to is Nevada and that's only because of Las Vegas. I haven't even been anywhere farther north than San Luis Obispo, CA. There are so many things in California and the United States that I feel I need to go out and see. I have this wanderlust in me that's pushing me to take any opportunity I can to go travel.