holiday season – Page 23 – Living off Leesh

Giddy but Inconclusive

Published on June 27, 2016May 27, 2018 by Alicia2 Comments

Alrighty-o fam. Here we are, still giddy and such despite having worked a full shift on my feet today and wanting to pass out.

Now, we have made it this far with my college choice and major decision, here comes the hard part: choosing a school. I can recall quite vividly crying on my couch as I scrolled over every college website I possibly could, without having a major in mind. Never in my life did I think I would have to complete this process all over again unless of course, I would be attending graduate school (besides the point). However, at this point, I have a solid major and minor combo (Spanish major with photojournalism minor) and need to find a school containing both, being cheap, and probably closer to home. I didn’t really miss home but it’s a request of my family. Also, my training I have to go to is based out of the midwest so it helps that I’ll be closer. Also, I sort of want a smaller school because I felt like I knew like 2 people at SDSU because of how big it is.

Funny isn’t it, how when choosing my first college I wanted as far from home as I could get, big school, warm weather, and a school with a football team. After me realizing that my parents weren’t just going to sneak up on me any random time, attending one football game, and realizing I hated the big school atmosphere, I want the complete opposite from a school. I’m still on boat with the school being as cheap as possible, but honestly, who isn’t?

We have a variety of schools to choose from, not too large of a variety but enough wiggle room to have a few good schools that I’ll be sure to find at least one I love.

The school choices (so far) are…

Cardinal Stritch University (Wisconsin)
Otterbein University (Ohio)
University of Indianapolis (Indiana)
University of Tennessee-Martin (Tennessee)
Andrews Universty (Michigan)
Murray State University (Kentucky)
Ashland University (Ohio)
Winona State University (Minnesota)
The University of Findlay (Ohio)
Xavier University (Ohio)

I’m sort of partial to Xavier University in Cincinnati because that was actually my top choice behind SDSU but I didn’t choose it because they have no football team, it was small, and religious (I know you don’t have to be of that religion to attend but still, Theology 101… really?!)

So, who knows. Might end up at Xavier, might end up at one of the others I mentioned. Or I may even end up elsewhere.

Update on my current schooling situation. I will not be attending ASU in the fall and will most likely be staying here and working or babysitting and whatnot. However, my aunt is in town from Phoenix and still wants me to live with her. So I might go live with my aunt for the fall semester and work but honestly. who knows? Not me.

I have a lot on my plate for the next few weeks and a lot of tough decisions to make. However, I’m happy (and tired) as can be.

Alicia

What do you want to be when you grow up?

Published on May 21, 2016February 1, 2018 by Alicia2 Comments

I was babysitting for my neighbor’s kids the other day and as she got home, she asked me if I had picked my major for school. When I told her chemical engineering, her jaw almost dropped. When she finally spoke and asked why, I told her it’s because I’ve always been good with math and science and I’ll get a job easily. She then asked me if I enjoyed it. All of my extracurriculars had involved the things I liked doing (photography, writing, design, leadership) , not what I was known to be best at (math and science). So, what do I really want to be when I grow up?

We all can recall the first time we heard this question. When our teachers asked us this question, our eager 5 and 6-year-old faces lit up as boys shouted president and firefighter and girls exclaimed princess and nurse.

Sadly, I haven’t been asked what I want to do with my life recently. People just assume I will do something in the math and science field or something international (I’ve taken spanish since I was in 5th grade) because these are things I have always been known for excelling at.

In the past 3 years, no one has asked me what I want to do with my life. My aunt and uncle are both engineers, and have instilled the notion that being an engineer is the best thing for me to do because I’m good at math and science and can make a ton of money. One of their friends told their children that they can study whatever they want, after they get an engineering degree. Why? Because engineering makes you the most money.

Why don’t they ask us that when we grow up? Why don’t they ask us what we want to do when we’re choosing our college or university? Why is it, that we’re so obsessed with money and how much we will make? When did making money earn a spot above being happy and enjoying our job?

People tell me what I need to do. I couldn’t decide on a major, so I just said international business so I could put something down on my applications. I never wanted to do business, everyone around me wanted me to. Because I would make money.

Now that I have changed universities, and majors, everyone around me wants me to major in chemical engineering. Why? Because I will be a woman engineer, will get first priority on jobs, and will make money.

Since when did society decide that how much money we make in our lives is more important than how we live our lives? I never wanted to major in business. And I don’t want to major in engineering now. So, what do I do? Do I major in something that makes me happy, maybe never get a job in that field? Or do I live a miserable life of an engineer and have all the money I could ever need?

I’m not too much of a sap but I do believe that we’re here for a reason. We were not born to work 40 hours a week just to be miserable and then go home and be too tired and aggravated with our lives to be happy around our loved ones. Not saying my aunt and uncle aren’t happy. They get ample time off, sabbaticals, and have so much money that they go on multiple cruises every year.

But, why can’t I do that while doing something I love? I don’t want to have kids, hell I might not even get married. I just want it to be my dogs, maybe a goat, and myself. I want a nice house of course, and a nice car, but at the end of the day, when I’m on my deathbed, looking back on my life, am I going to remember the audi and the million dollar house that I had, or am I going to remember my job, where I spent most of my waking hours, my friends and colleagues that I met at that job, and all of the experiences outside of my house?

Shit, I want to do something I love, but the second I said I even considered switching my major to biology and them getting my masters in marine biology, my parents couldn’t have said the words “what about chemical engineering” faster. Why? They just want me to make money and be successful.

When did we define success as how much money you make at the end of the day? Why can’t success be something less materialistic? Why can’t we define success as something worth living for, something great? Something like how many friends I had, how many new places I visited, how much I enjoy my job? Why is success just money and power? When did we all agree that this is what society is going to be, and, why wasn’t I a part of this conversation?

So, what do I want to be when I grow up? Since I’ve started blogging, I have rekindled my love for writing. I love writing, being able to put all of my feelings down on paper, or on the blogosphere. It’s calming and I love seeing how my writing has progressed through time. I love animals. I would love to live on a farm with rehab animals and just help them escape lives of abuse, violence, etc. I would have farm animals, house animals, exotic animals, anything really. I would love, cherish, and care for each and every one of them. I love design. Over the summer. My life is a nonstop HGTV marathon. I love critiquing, agreeing and adding my own opinions on what I would do with each house, room, etc. I love yearbook. My entire highschool career was centered around my school’s yearbook, and although it may have caused me to turn gray early, I loved that class and I can’t imagine my life without it. And, now that I am not active in my school’s yearbook, I miss it. I love the mind. My entire life has been filled with mental illnesses and trying to understand the mind, why can’t I try to help others understand their minds as I have been trying to understand my own?If I could do any one of these things with my life, it would be grand. But, STEM is the way of the future and despite what you want/ like to do with your life, none of it matters if you can’t make money.

Everyone always tells you to never major in journalism, communications, psychology, philosophy. Basically nothing in the school of arts and letters. Major in business, major in STEM. Why? We need people in those fields, or else that major wouldn’t exist. We need biologists, we need therapists, we need writers, we need designers. Why can it be the other person. Why can’t it be me?

So, here we are. I spent countless nights crying myself to sleep because of how stressed I was, how stressed I was because I couldn’t find a major that suited me. And now, here we are, staring blankly at my ceiling wondering why I couldn’t have just picked something I enjoyed all along.

Talk to you all soon,

Alicia

The Top 100 Inspirational Weight Loss Bloggers

Published on May 17, 2016June 25, 2016 by AliciaLeave a comment

Hi, everyone. Look at me double posting. My life update post will be up in the next few days, however, I was checking my stats page this morning and saw that I had a lot of viewers that were referred to my blog by DietToGo.

Curious as to how that was, I clicked the link in my stats and was brought here

I immediately noticed that the post was entitled “The Top 100 Inspirational Weight Loss Bloggers You’ve Probably Never Heard Of (Until Now)” and got super stoked because people have noticed I exist and they think I’m decently cool.

Your girl (me) was lucky enough to score spot #13 on that list (happens to be my favorite number too) and I’m just so happy/stoked/honored to be put on this list with so many other amazing bloggers.

So, I recommend everyone check out DietToGo’s post and check out all of the other amazing bloggers who are also featured on the list. I know I did!

Anyway, I want to say again how excited I am that I was featured and want to thank Caitlin (author of the post) for taking the time to hand select my blog and to read some of my posts. It means so much

Talk to you all soon,

Alicia

To my brother…

Published on May 16, 2016May 27, 2018 by AliciaLeave a comment

It’s 12:04 am. I retreated to my bed over an hour ago, after receiving this news. I’m laying in bed, thinking of you. I won’t be getting to sleep anytime soon, no matter how long I count sheep or how long I paint pictures of us on my ceiling. I just stare at the ceiling, thinking of you.

It’s funny, isn’t it? How we think we know so much, but in reality we know so little? For my entire 19 years in this planet, It’s been my sister and I, well at least since she was born. I never knew you existed until today. Intriguing, right? I always thought the whole long lost sibling concept kept its place in the box of the television, but here I am, finding out after 19 years of life, I’ve had this older brother all along, and had no idea.

Everyone else knew. Well, not everyone. However, almost all of the adults I spend ample time with knew, yet somehow my sister and I were kept in this bubble of unknowingness for so long.

We sat there, my sister and I, mouths agape, as my our mom told us about you. Our half-brother, who grew up less than 45 minutes from where we live, and somehow we had no idea you existed.

12:09 now. I’m numb, still cozy in bed, still thinking about you. You know I exist, you’ve seen pictures of me. What do you think of me? Did you want two sisters? I always wanted an older brother. I nagged constantly to my mom that I wished I had been born second and that I had an older brother. And I do.

My Our mom showed me your instagram today. You look almost identical to my uncle, Jim, so I know we’re related. You’re my brother. I have a brother. Sorry if I keep saying that. Truth is, the facts haven’t sunk in yet.

As many times as scroll through your pictures, trying to absorb as much as I can through those square photos of your friends, family and 2 cats, I can’t wrap my head around it. How did I not know? How did I not know I had a brother? I have a brother.

12:12 and I’m upright, still trying to process how this happened. How you exist. How I never knew. How everyone kept this a secret from my sister and I for so long. Neither of us can. How did you never come up in conversation? How did your name never slip out?

I want to cry, buy why? What’s the point? I have a brother, and I didn’t know. I think it’s because I always wanted one. I always wanted a brother to look up to, to show me the ropes, to make sure no one picked on me, make sure mom and dad never gave me too hard of a time.

You were 11 when I was born. You had no idea I existed then. That my mom existed. You lived less than 40 minutes away from me but we had no idea. Crazy.

My mom told my sister and I about 6 hours ago now. We were in the living room, I was checking twitter and my sister was eating. She said she had something to tell us that she didn’t know how to say.

Immediately thinking the worst, I assumed someone had died. But really, someone was born, not really but born into my world, anyway.

There isn’t much to say about you. I don’t know you… I may never. I know nothing about you, but you’re my brother.

You were born on June 22nd, 1986 at 2:13 am. Your name is Evan. You have 2 cats. You live in Los Angeles. And I hope you want to meet me. I really do. Because you have two younger sisters that want to meet their big brother.

I love you already, even if you don’t know it yet.
Alicia

P.S. Sorry I haven’t posted in a while, with finals and getting home a few days ago and then this news I haven’t had much time to do anything.

20 tips for freshmen attending San Diego State University next year

Published on April 10, 2016June 25, 2016 by AliciaLeave a comment

Hi everyone, my best friend from home came to San Diego this weekend to visit a few colleges before the deadline to decide on a college for the next 4 years, May 1st. She still hasn’t decided and is between Pepperdine University in Malibu and the University of Indianapolis. Obviously I hope she picks Pepperdine so she’ll be closer to me but obviously I hope she chooses the place that is best for her. So, for those of you people who know that you’ll be attending SDSU in the fall, here are some tips for all of you to survive, Hope they help. 🙂

Even though San Diego is the stereotypical Sunny and 75 all the time, pack sweaters and bring an umbrella. YOU WILL NEED THEM BOTH.
While some people think that Greek Life is a huge deal at State, don’t feel pressured into rushing. There are so many great people who don’t rush and are just fine. Greek life isn’t for everyone.
Just because Greek life isn’t for everyone, it doesn’t make it ok to put it down. They did nothing to you and making people feel bad about something they enjoy is rude.
Be social and put yourself out there, I didn’t my first semester and I missed out on so many friendship opportunities
That being said, don’t worry if you haven’t found ‘your group’ after the first month… or even the first semester.
This is going to sound super cliche, but get involved. That’s the only way you will meet people with your interests. I’m good friends with people on my floor but my closest friends came from getting involved.
Don’t forget about your friends back home. They know you better than anyone you meet at school. And they’ll be there when you have to rant about your new friends.
While going home is great every once in a while, don’t go home every weekend. You miss a lot.
Don’t be afraid to go to professor’s office hours. You will need letters of recommendation at some point, and professors are more likely to write better letters (instead of a cookie cutter version) on students they know.
GO TO CLASS. It doesn’t matter if professors say class isn’t mandatory/don’t take attendance, or whether they post all of their lecture slides on Blackboard. If you want an A in the class, you have to go. Missing one or two classes a semester won’t kill you but don’t turn into the kid who just shows up for exams.
The Turtle pond is one of the best places on campus. You can look at all of the turtles and fish or you can just sit on the grass to relax or study Bonus! If you get sunburnt easily like me, there is all kinds of shade for you
Don’t feel restricted to campus. Go out and explore. Whether you go to Sunset Cliffs or just to Normal Heights, take in all San Diego has to offer.
Go to Sporting events. Whether it’s a basketball or swim meet. Every Aztec has so much spirit and we support all of our sports teams.
Do not bring a coffee maker to the dorms. They are not allowed and you will get in trouble if you are caught with one. Also, Starbucks (3 campus locations) and BCB (5 campus locations) are on the meal plan.
Utilize the Storm Hall terrace. It’s my favorite spot on campus to get homework done and the view of the sunset there is always impeccable.
Go to the Farmer’s Market on Thursdays. It’s a nice change from dorm food, and even though it’s not on the meal plan, it’s completely worth it. There is food that ranges from Western Africa to gluten free desserts… Something to satisfy everyone’s taste buds.
Don’t wait until 9:30 to go to the market to spend your meal plan money. You will wait for a really long time (I waited once for half an hour) and if the line is long you won’t be let inside. So, here is when your umbrellas and sweaters come in handy.
Cuic isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. It’s good the first few weeks, but you will get sick of it
Speaking of Cuic, when it comes to meal plans, Flex 7 is the way to go. On Meals Plus you will have so many Cuic swipes at the end of the semester you will end up wasting your parents money and bringing your entire floor to dinner there.
Remember, when Hepner hall looks really good because of the angle of the Sun, snap that picture. No one will judge you. We all do it. Who doesn’t want to brag to all of their Instagram followers that they go to the prettiest school in the country?
my photo

Hope these tips helped you, and for those of you still deciding on a college, good luck and stay true to your hearts (and wallets)

Talk to you Thursday

Alicia

Lucky Day

Published on March 17, 2016May 27, 2018 by Alicia2 Comments

And no, I’m not referring to the seahorse that was supposed to win big in the 2004 hit movie Shark Tale, but I’m talking about St. Patrick’s Day.

Hi all, As I’m assuming all of you know, today is Saint Patrick’s Day. And although my Irish ancestors have cursed me with ivory skin that burns within the first 5 seconds of walking outdoors. However, they did give me a few good genes. Some of those being a love for potatoes (although I’m not quite sure who doesn’t love potatoes so…) and myself and all of my other pale skinned Irish friends have our own day to party and wear green, and pretend we’re leprechauns.

Today, I didn’t manage to leave my bed until 2:17pm, probably not due to the fact that I had no classes today, but the fact that looking outside I didn’t anyone donning green attire with face paint and stupid beads. I didn’t see people with ‘Kiss me I’m Irish” or “Kiss me I’m (pretending to be) Irish” shirts. It was a sight unlike any I’ve ever seen on this holiday.

Back home, St. Patrick’s Day is an enormous deal. The festivities begin the weekend before, as everyone and their mother heads downtown to see the Chicago River being dyed green, followed by a parade, and other events scattered across the city. For the entire week leading up to St. Patrick’s Day, everyone wears some sort of green to school (even my college friends who go to school in Chicago can attest to this statement and the ones to follow) so it not merely us high school folk) in preparation for the grand day.

When St. Patrick’s Day finally arrives, everyone goes all out. Kids show up to school decked out in festive shirts, green pants, shamrock socks and earrings, and of course not forgetting as many green beads that can fit around their necks. Some even dye their hair green for the day or sport green eye shadow, those who do are truly spirited and I give them high praises. Our school is always a sea of green and everyone, whether they are Irish or not, is Irish for the day and stoked about it.

After school, my friends and family head to a bar where my mom grew up where we are fed, and after food, music is played and Irish dancers litter the floor of the bar. They go on for hours until we finally make our way back to my grandma’s house for some of her famous corned beef and cabbage (obviously as a vegan I won’t be eating the corned beef but I do eat cabbage and potatoes).

The day is full of fun, laughter, joy, and just love for the Irish. I guess California didn’t get the memo about how great of a country Ireland is. So, alas, I will go back to eating potatoes in my dorm and subtly cheering on one of my favorite holidays (aka wearing olive-green shirt, green bracelets, and using my minty green mouthwash).

Until Sunday
Alicia

Here’s to New Adventures

Published on March 15, 2016May 27, 2018 by AliciaLeave a comment

Good evening everyone. Once again, sorry for not posting on Sunday, my planned post was to discuss my best friend coming to visit me here in San Diego for her spring break, but alas she didn’t leave until late Sunday night, and I spent all of yesterday (after class of course) sleeping. So, here we are now, about to embark in another late blog post about another tidbit of my life.

My friend who came to visit me, is from Arizona, coincidentally she also attends Arizona State University (no that’s not why I’m going there) and her spring break was last week. She visited me for her fall break (I would’ve discussed that on here too but I’m pretty sure I made this blog about a week after she left…) and she decided that San Diego and I were good enough hosts for her to return for another leap of adventure. She arrived in San Diego after my classes and (almost) daily venture to the gym and then after a few hours of watching Netflix and catching up, we went to bed.

Something I was blessed with this semester is not having classes on Thursday’s. Due to this, I do one of two things. 1. Don’t leave my bed until 3pm or 2. Get up bright and early and early and explore my city, always searching for new coffee shops to do homework and escape people.

So, Thursday we hopped on the trolley (sort of like a subway or the L for my Chicagoans) and then transferred to a bus. We ended up taking that bus all the way to its end and ended up at UCSD. Obviously we had no means or longing to be there, so we hopped back on that bus except headed the other way obviously and ended up at a mall where we got lunch. We had been on public transportation for almost 2 hours and had only been to lunch and a bus tour of UCSD. We had no idea what we wanted to do, so we opted to head to downtown La Jolla and just walk around, see the beach etc. so that’s what we did. After eating at a cute vegetarian/vegan place, we got on yet another bus and headed for La Jolla.

Upon arriving in La Jolla, I wanted to see some murals that I have seen on Facebook and heard about through the grapevine. We managed to find one (after walking in the opposite direction for a mile), which was bricks painted in all different colors, however there were cars parked in front of it, so I only got a few pictures. After that, I decided that we could walk to see a few of the other murals. After, once again walking in the wrong direction (thanks Siri) we found a sort of main street La Jolla and took that to find another mural. My friend, Marisa, wanted to see the sea lions of La Jolla, so we made the short walk over to the coast and saw a multitude of them, a few with babies even. We stayed for the Sunset, because what’s better than a sunset on the beach???? After the sunset, we found a few more murals and ended up back at the bus and took it back to Old Town, to get dinner. After dinner we took the trolley back to my dorm and passed out we were so tired.

quinoa salad

1st mural

2nd mural

trees

We didn’t do anything on Friday, because I had class and a ton of homework. Marisa ended up visiting another one of her friends who also happened to be in San Diego for spring break, but yeah Friday was nothing special. I slept a lot and did a lot of homework. Grand day.

Saturday was a bit more eventful than Friday. I had wanted to visit a cute cafe that I had seen on a lot of my friends’ Instagrams at Pacific beach, and Marisa had wanted to play mini golf (which there is a course at Mission Beach) so we decided to spend the day at some beaches. There were wayyyyy too many Spring Breakers (not gnarly dude) at the beaches for my liking, however since it was on the colder side (60s) it was better than it could have been. We first went to Mission Beach, where we went to an arcade and I spend about $20 just to leave with a harmonica, duck fan, sticky octopus, eraser, and like some other thing that I literally have no way to describe. After that I creamed Marisa at mini golf. On that note, she was ready to leave Mission Beach to go to Pacific Beach. After taking the bus from Mission Beach to PB, we made it to Rum Jungle Cafe. Marisa apparently is terrified of fruit and refused to eat the delicious ace bowl topped with mango, banana, pineapple, and coconut. So, I had to eat both of ours (not complaining though because fruit is the bomb). After that we walked around the pier, and around the beach also making it in time for the sunset. Finally about 830 we stopped at Denny’s for dinner. After Denny’s and about 7 trips to the bathroom after inhaling all of the iced tea I could, we boarded the bus again and headed back to campus.

On Sunday, the day Marisa left, we had no idea what we were going to do. Finally, after much debating, I looked at some coffee shops that I had not yet been to, and found some that were somewhat close and decided we would do to them. The first one we went to, called Bird Rock Coffee Roasters, was really good. I got a soy latte and the barista put a cute foam flower on top of the coffee. We didn’t stay too long before making our way to the bus station to get on the #2 bus to be dropped off right by the next shop. Much to our chagrin, the bus wasn’t on time, so we took a different bus and had to walk a mile uphill to get to the coffee shop. Needless to say I had 23 flights of stairs and was not in the mood for anymore hot coffee. We got tea and some cute vegan pasture and sat down, cooling off from our hike up that hill. Once we finally finished there, Marisa and I decided that we would take the bus back to Old town and get dinner before she left. After dinner, we got back to my dorm, I took my mail in ballot to the nearest drop box (#feeltheBern) and then Marisa left.

It was really nice to be able to see her and I can’t wait to be a mere 30 minutes away from each other in the fall.
Alicia

Feliz Navidad

Published on December 28, 2015May 27, 2018 by AliciaLeave a comment

Hi all.
I hope you all have had a merry Christmas, or Kwanzaa or Hanukkah or whatever you celebrate. Mine was good. Coming home from school has been nice and being able to catch up with friends and family has been even better and I’m loving every second of it. Minus the time my dad has been making fun of me and trying to be funny. “I have to make up for all of me you haven’t seen in the past 4 months” Splendid.
Seeing all of my family and friends has made it seem like I just vacationed to San Diego and never really left home which has been nice. I also realized how much I took for granted since coming home- being able to do laundry in my pajamas so literally all of my clothes will be clean, HOME COOKING, TV, my own bed, my puppy, and most importantly my friends and family.
While I have missed all of these things, I can’t get wait to get back to SD. 3 more weeks here though. 🙂

What holiday do you all celebrate and what did you all do for the holidays?
Talk to you all soon.
Alicia

Guess who’s back, back again

Published on December 22, 2015May 27, 2018 by AliciaLeave a comment

Hi all, I’m back. I knew that I wouldn’t be posting often in the last month due to finals, but I wasn’t aware it would be almost a month of no posts. I figure I’ll give an update on my life and what has happened in the past month.

For starters I spent the majority of December, after returning from Arizona from Thanksgiving at my aunt’s house, I spent studying, crying because of studying and taking finals.

Now that I’m done with finals, I am back home in Chicago and already longing to go back to San Diego. I am happy to see old friends and family, my dog and my bed are the best however I miss the warm weather and being on my own. I’ll blog when I can over break and may queue up a few posts now and then.

Until next time, I’ll be refreshing my grades to see if my finals and final grades have been posted.

Talk to you all soon

Alicia

What I’m Thankful for

Published on November 24, 2015May 27, 2018 by AliciaLeave a comment

Hey all, so I hope you all are having a good Thanksgiving Holiday. I left for my aunt’s house yesterday and I am so happy to be on this break. My aunt took me shopping for all of the vegan and gluten free food I could eat which I’m very thankful for and she even bought me some soap so i didn’t have to lug my big pump soap dispenser all the way to Phoenix. She is working a half day today, so I have spent my time relaxing, cuddling with her 3 puppies, watching real TV and not Netflix (1st world problems I know) and doing aa bit of homework. Since there are 2 days until Thanksgiving, I’ve decided to beat everyone to the punch of saying what I’m thankful for. For starters, I typically never think about what I’m thankful for, because I’ve been pretty lucky in growing up. Granted I don’t have my own car or go to Harvard or can always be buying whatever I want, I always have had a roof over my head, food on my plate, and a loving and caring support group of family and friends who are always there when I need them. I remember one year, my mom, sister, and I went up to Wisconsin for Thanksgiving weekend to visit my mom’s best friend and her family. On Saturday they did their Thanksgiving dinner and after we went around the room and said what we were thankful for. One of the ladies had recently gotten laser eye surgery and said that she was thankful for being able to see. One little girl said she was thankful for puppies that exist because her dog recently died and puppies made her not miss her dog so much, and someone else said they were thankful to not have to work on Thanksgiving for the first time in 10 years. I can fully admit that I have taken each and every one of these things for granted in my life. I have 20/20 vision and the only time I can’t see is when my eyes are closed. Puppies are such a gift and despite my depression, going into a pen filled with puppies can lighten anyone’s day, I’m telling you try it sometime. I’ve never worked on Thanksgiving. Granted I have only been a nanny but had the parents both had to work on Thanksgiving, I might have had to do that. It’s so funny. All the things we take for granted and things we never really appreciate until other people don’t have them and we notice it on them, or we don’t have them ourselves.
I’m thankful for so much, it’s not even funny. I’m thankful that I wake up everyday bright eyed and bushy tails (not all days) and am given the opportunity to go to a good college and learn to further my education.
I’m thankful that I have clean drinking water and can brush my teeth, shower, and drink something so pure and clean.
I’m thankful that I was given the opportunity to travel over halfway across the country for college and that my parents and grandparents are helping me and paying for most of it.
I’m thankful that I have a nice warm bed to retire to at the end of every day and that no matter what, it will be there
I’m thankful that I have a roof over my head and food on my plate. Not everyone has both. Not everyone has even one of these things and I’m so thankful that I was given a life where both are not seen as luxuries
I’m thankful for my family, friends, peers, acquaintances, random hot boys I have seen at coffee shops,etc. I’m thankful for all of you because, you have all impacted my life in some way, even if just in the slightest sense.
I’m thankful for electricity. Thank you computer, iPhone, iPad, TV, etc for existing because you make my life so much easier. While you have created an antisocial society, you have helped me write essays, capture moments, and stay in touch with family despite being 2500 miles away
I’m thankful for animals. I love animals. I love how I feel when I am around animals and I’m thankful that animals have given me the inspiration to pursue a career with them in mind.
Finally, I am thankful for myself. Why? I am thankful that I have a good head on my shoulders and that I have dreams and aspirations and that I can do anything I set my mind to. I love you self
That’s a bit of what I’m thankful for. Talk to you all soon
Alicia

I’m Back

Published on November 21, 2015May 27, 2018 by AliciaLeave a comment

Hey all, Long time no talk.
I have been so busy this past week finishing essays and doing projects and cramming every second I possibly could with homework so that I would have a break over Thanksgiving, and somehow there is still more to do Not to fret though, I’m back and ready to blog. I will try and queue a few posts to post in the coming week but with finals just around the corner there is no guarantee that I can write every day. I will try to write every day but for the next few weeks there will be pretty much no consistency and I apologize for that. However, I’m doing my best to blog and study and blogging will be a nice break for when I need to take on. I have 4 finals; one for my honors class, one for Spanish, Biology, and my Sociology classes. I have them on December 10th, December 15th, 16th, and 17th and then I go home on December 17th for an entire month. I’m very excited to going home but I was so accustomed to living in the dorm. Having my dad wash my clothes and not having to pay $2 overtime I need to wash clothes, will be an ice luxury, however. I am also very excited that I can see all of my family and friends because I haven’t seen everyone since August 20th and for those of my friends who left for school before me, even earlier than that. However, the 2 things that I am looking forward to the most are sleeping in my own bed in my own room where I can lock he door and jam to songs in my underwear (here you’re never certain when an unsuspecting roommate may walk in) and to see my puppy. My sister sends me videos and pictures of her on occasion however, those will not suffice. I need to snuggle with 100 pounds of fur and slobber and love. Honestly, if I could I would spend the whole month cuddling with her in my bed catching up on TV shows I have missed. But, alas I have friends and family who want to see me and my baby has to take the backseat.
Just a few things to remember in the coming weeks: during Thanksgiving break a majority of my time will be spent with my aunt and uncle, and my friend who goes to school in Phoenix. The rest of the time will be allotted to sleeping and homework, so like I said if I only post once or twice next week, I’m sorry, life is hectic. Then, the week I get home is pretty low key. I have a few presentations to give and a field trip and an essay due but nothing too extreme. All of the hard work will have been done during Thanksgiving Break.The week after that however, is basically hell week. I will be cramming my brain with information I didn’t bother to learn before and rarely leaving the comfort of my bed or the library, unless it’s to pee or eat, sleeping is optional. So, that week and the week following will be very insane due to everything I have to know for my exams, But once December 17th and 10am comes along, I will be free and will be able to blog and sleep, and Netflix, and cuddle, and get myself completely immersed in the Christmas Spirit until my heart is content.
So, that’s my life update,
Talk to you all soon
Alicia

Let the Holiday Season Begin

Published on November 2, 2015May 27, 2018 by AliciaLeave a comment

Happy November. Also known as “Start of the Holiday Season.” People begin prepping for Thanksgiving and then comes Black Friday shopping. Then for students come finals. After that Christmas, Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, and suddenly it’s the New Year and it’s time to start another year all over again. The Holiday Season is such a hustle and bustle of last minute shopping, picture taking, and just a whole lot of celebrating, which is why it’s definitely my favorite time of the year. The joy that promulgates throughout the city and the snow that falls down (in Chicago not here) makes me feel so festive and content with myself and everyone around me.

Living in Sunny San Diego hasn’t really gotten me in the Christmas Spirit because of how warm and well, sunny it is. It’s quite weird to think that 2000 miles away it home, where it’s snowing and cold, and here it’s still sunny and 75. While I’m absolutely in love with this weather here, I have begun to miss the snow and coldness of Chicago. Do I miss shoveling snow and frozen hair? Or the dirty snow that shows after hundreds of cars drive over it or the hidden ice beneath the snow that i seem to be attracted to? Of course not, but snow I believe does bring me closer to feeling festive. But, on December 18th I will be completely immersed in the Holiday spirit when I return home to the cold, dreary, Holiday filled Chicago life.

Nevertheless, every mall and superstore is crawling with Christmas Lights and Santa Claus blowups so I do feel a bit holiday-like.I can’t wait to decorate my dorm walls in lights and everything else Christmas. Especially since my wall of photos fell down in my dorm today. It used to be homey and now there’s just a blank wall. Nonetheless, I will continue singing and dancing to Christmas carols much to my roommate’s and the rest of my floor’s shagrin.

I’ll continue to discuss my love for the Holidays and discuss my Holiday experience.

Talk to you all soon
Alicia 🙂