Some days I wonder if my impulsivity will get the best of me. I don't know what it is, but there are times that I simply act without considering the consequences. Or I do think about the consequences, and determine that the corresponding action is worth the risk. Today is one of those days.
I've always been a dreamer. But then again, who isn't? I never like to let reality get in the way of what I want to achieve. Of course, my aspirations have changed over the years. I no longer want a huge house by the water - that's too stationary. The world is calling my name, and adventure is the number one word in my vocabulary.
I'm tired of sitting around, hoping for what may happen. It's time to make things happen, and sometimes that involves taking risks, and spending a fraction of your college savings. Go read my posts Change and Work In Progress to see what dreams I'm making happen. I don't know how this will all turn out, or how my friends and family are going to react. But I do know one thing.
If I affect merely one life for the better, this adventure will be well worth the risk.
If you ever find yourself in the Pacific Northwest, be sure to take advantage of the numberless hikes in the area. I can't believe that I've lived here for ninteen years and can probably count on both of my hands the number of hikes I've been on. There are hundreds of hikes in Washington and Oregon, and I was able to go on one of them yesterday!
I met up with my best friend, who recently got home from Oregon State University, and her younger sister, and headed off to Snoqualmie Pass in the Cascade mountains. Lake 22, according to the Washington Trails Association, is 5.4 miles roundtrip and has a 1350 ft elevation gain. It was the perfect difficulty for not being in the best shape physically. Once we got to the lake, we hiked around it, which added another mile onto the trip. We also hiked up one of the rocky slopes to get a better view of the lake. Although this was not the smartest or safest idea, it was definitely challenging, and the view was worth it!
As soon as I got home, I began looking up other hikes in the Cascades that are slighly more difficult than Lake 22. It's all about challenging yourself! Who knows, maybe one day I'll be able to scale Mount Raineer - all 14,409 feet of it! But I'll have to work up to that seeing as I am still sore from the 5.4 mile trek to Lake 22... And for your viewing pleasure, here are a few more shots from the hike!
Ok I feel completely horrible because this post is two weeks late, and I managed to misplace my SD card, which had all of my unedited footage on it... So that video will be put off for now.
Another summer bucket list item has been completed - bridge jumping! We traveled an hour and a half northeast to Oso, WA. Impatient as I am, I didn't want to wait until July to visit this hot spot. It was a bit chilly, so we weren't able to just swim around as much as I would have liked. But I always love taking people who've never been before! Personally, I've been jumping this bridge since I was about six or seven years old. I remember driving up there all the time with my family in the summer. I suppose that is where my love for a good adrenaline rush began!
Anyway, we had a great time. I ended up jumping about five times - go big or go home! We finisheda great day with a midnight breakfast at Beth's Cafe in Seattle. If you ever visit, be sure to hit this place up, it's delicious! It has been open since 1954 and was featured on the Travel Channel and Man v. Food.
Welcome, avid readers, to the first ever Thoughtful Thursday! I'm in a very uplifting mood, which can probably be attributed to the Disney Channel movie marathon I just finished watching. Nevertheless, I've decided that I'll take this weekly opportunity to share my thoughts, be it motivational, thought-provoking, or just downright outrageous. Enjoy!
I absolutely love this quote from Tina Fey. "Say Yes, and you'll figure it out afterwards." My first couple years of high school, I never went out of my comfort zone, only sticking with what was familiar. My attitude was completely negative and pessimistic, and I noticed that people didn't enjoy hanging out with someone with that type of outlook. After being confronted by some very close and honest friends, to whom I will be forever grateful, I realized that I was long overdue for a change.
"Yes" became a common word in my vocabulary. I was doing things that I would have never even considered a year prior. Student body officer, dance team, starting clubs (Harry Potter club was a real hit!), you name it! I became more personable and positive, and was excited for what the future would bring! People actually confronted me to comment on the dramatic change I had made.
Now, my friends see me as impulsive, but I like see myself as an adventure-seeker. I want to explore the world and what it has to offer, so I won't hesitate to say yes when an opportunity presents itself. Even if I have no idea how I'll do it, I know that I'll figure it out eventually.
So go ahead, say "yes"! You never know what kind of adventure it will entail, or where you will end up. Either way, you won't regret it!
Wow, it's been an entire week since I've posted! I wish I could blame that on the fact that I've been super busy lately, but alas, I am simply lazy. And because of this, I still have a ton of unedited bucket list footage. Hopefully that will be completed within the next couple days!
If you recall in my recent post, Change, I want to eventually begin filming short videos and writing corresponding blog posts/articles in an effort to raise awareness for a specific subject, foundation, etc. I am pleased to announce that my very first project is under way! I've teamed up with a very talented musician and vocalist, and we are working on arranging and producing the music that will be in the video! I am very excited, but nervous at the same time. Obviously I've never done anything like this before, and since it is raising awareness for something near and dear to me, I want it to be the best quality possible. I anticipate this project lasting at least a month, if not more, but the finished product will be worth it!
Entering the field of videography/photography is extremely expensive, I must say. I haven't even bought the DSLR camera I want yet, and my wallet is already aching from purchasing some other necessary equipment. Admittedly, I have had to dip into my college savings (it's a good thing I have a job secured for the Fall semester). However, once I have the basic equipment, I will be able to produce endless pieces that will benefit many people. Never have I been so motivated by anything in my life, and that is why I know I'm on the correct track - this is what I'm supposed to be doing right now.
Alright, first things first... Check out my awesome new iPod case! I've seen these before online and loved it, but assumed it would be kind of expensive for a case. Finally, I looked it up on Amazon, and it was only $1.87! It was such a steal, I couldn't resist myself. I remember clear as day playing on these things as a kid. There was no way that you could get me to stop playing Pokemon blue edition - I still have it to this day! Although I have since then upgraded to a Gameboy Advance.
Next matter of business, I have some great footage to edit from this past weekend. My friends and I took an hour drive out in order to cross off another bucket list item! But my computer is still being fixed, so I can only hope that I will get it back by the end of the week. Stay tuned!
Now, I've recently discovered this great app/website called Bloglovin'. If you are like me and have a good hand full of blogs that you enjoy reading, this is the best way to get all the recent posts in one place! Simply search a specific blog, follow it (assuming the writer of that blog has registered it with Bloglovin'), and new posts will show up in your news feed. To follow my blog, simply click the "Follow this blog with Bloglovin" button on the left sidebar right under the About Me section, or search "All Roads Lead To Nowhere" in the Bloglovin' search bar. The only downside is that I'm pretty sure you can't view the YouTube videos I post, but other than that, it's wonderfully organized! (My secondary blog, All Roads Lead To Disney!, is also available on Bloglovin'). Much appreciated! And good luck to those of you finishing up final exams, you can do it!
I have unofficially decided to change my career path on more than one occasion, as noted in at least three of my previous posts: To Be or Not To Be... Psychology!, Actually..., and Forensics. These impromptu changes were most likely because of how it was fictitiously portrayed in some particular movie or TV series. And yet again, I have decided on a new field of study.
Major: Communications/Journalism
Minors: Psychology & Media Arts Studies
However, this decision is not based on a new TV show I have discovered. It has been influenced by a combination of my love for writing and the growing YouTube community.
Ever since I was young, I have displayed a great passion for writing. I've always dreamt that I would become a famous author, but alas, my short attention span and lack of patience has prevented me from completing even half of a novel. I had finally settled on the fact that writing would never be part of my career - it would simply remain a favorite hobby. Instead, I pursued psychology. Don't get me wrong, I love it! As a writer, I am very interested in people and how they think and interact, but I dread the research aspect of this field. There is no way I want to be stuck in a lab working all day, or constantly conducting experiments.
But how does YouTube play into this, you may ask? I will be the first one to admit that as I watch my favorite YouTubers throughout the day, I'm not just fangirling and drooling over their attractive accents. They are using relatively new media platforms to reach out, often on a global scale, in order to contribute for good. YouTube has been increasingly effective in educating and uniting people from around the world, and I want to be a part of that.
Ideally, I want to travel the world in an effort to educate my readers/viewers about the conditions in which some people must live, whether this is their housing, health, or social conditions. I would immerse myself in a particular project - interacting, filming, researching, and writing. The finished product would be an article or blog post paired with a short 5-7 minute video, both informing the audience about the project and what they can do to help. I believe that when these mediums of publication are combined, a larger audience can be reached, more people will be influenced, and more changes for good can be made throughout the world. Below are examples of videos that accomplish just this.
Comic Relief - South Africa
JacksGap
The Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation - Toronto, Canada
If you haven't gone out and watched this movie yet, than what the heck are you doing reading this blog post? Go! Now! And I don't just mean stream it online, you need the full theater experience! Don't worry, I won't go anywhere. We can rave about the movie together when you get back.
Ok, now that that is taken care of, wasn't it freakin ah-may-zing?! It takes a lot to make it to #1 on my favorite movies list, but Now You See Me just beat out Inception with a wave of it's magic wand. Amazing.
I like lots of movies. Disney? Yes. Harry Potter? Oh yeah. But in order for me to really love a movie, I need something that gets me thinking - one where I want to go back and watch it again just to see what I missed. It's a movie where, just when you think you are two steps ahead of the game, you soon find out that you're actually three steps behind. You think, as the audience member, that you have the third person omniscient point of view. Well, you are in for a surprise.
And don't even get me started on the oh-so-handsome Dave Franco.
Now You See Me is stacked when it comes to the cast, elaborate when it comes to the tricks, and pleasing to the ear when it comes to Morgan Freeman. But you don't need to take my word for it - go find out for yourself!
To visit my Disney College Program blog, click here.
It's finally June, and I'm so happy! And on that note, I have created my very own summer playlist! I absolutely love listening to music, but I usually tend to stick to the same artists and genres. So in an effort to branch out, I've only picked songs I had never heard before, or artists I had never heard of. If you follow any of the British YouTubers that I have mentioned in previous posts (e.g. Alfie Deyes, Sam Pepper, Joe Sugg or Marcus Butler), you may recognize some of these songs from their videos or blog entries. In addition to the YouTube video, I will link you to the songs on iTunes!
This one doesn't really fit in with my playlist seeing as I have heard this song, and very much enjoy Kid Cudi. However, I didn't get hooked on it until recently, so here it is!
These guys primarily do covers, and I have to admit that I much prefer this version to the original! They aren't on iTunes, but I have provided a link to their YouTube channel.
Some days I wonder if my impulsivity will get the best of me. I don't know what it is, but there are times that I simply act without considering the consequences. Or I do think about the consequences, and determine that the corresponding action is worth the risk. Today is one of those days.
