Eighteen Things

1.    Life is about enjoying the highs, getting through the lows, finding the good in the bad, understanding the bad in the good and appreciating every moment in between. 

2.    Open toed shoes at a music festival has never been a good idea. 

3.     Not everyone in your life is going to fully appreciate what you have to say, what you create or what you put your heart & soul into. That doesn't matter. Anything that makes your heart sing is worth it. 

4.     It's hard for people to understand what they aren't experiencing. If you feel something's wrong, something is probably wrong regardless of anyone else's diagnosis. 

5.    You don't like parties. Don't go to them. You don't like alcohol. Don't drink it. 

6.     If he liked you nearly as much as you liked him, he'd have texted you forever and a year ago. Give your love to someone who actually cares to have it. 

7.    Drop all the things and people that don't make every fibre of your being explode with sensation. Life is too short for mediocre, or less than amazing. 

8.    99% of the things & people you stress over aren't worth it. Stop.

9.    Your playlist is actually killer and your ability to memorize raps & drop them like you wrote them yourself is other worldly.  

10.    You're so deserving of the life you wish to live. If you need help to get there, ask for it. It's hard. It'll take you a minute, but just know that it's about the journey, but the destination will make the entire thing worth it. 

11.    You're not invisible. 

12.    Good people, good times & good vibes are the most important. 

13.    The smallest things are so important, especially health wise. Eat breakfast, take your daily vitamin, wash your face and floss. 

14.    Cry when you need to and laugh when you want to. Anyone in your life who won't laugh with you, or be your shoulder to lean on has no place here anyways. Let it all out. Emotions can become dangerous. 

15.   Celebrate yourself. Your curves, your colour, your hair, it's length, it's texture, your eyes, nose, and lips and all the many features on you that are unique. Society won't. The media won't either. You've got to find your worth and beauty within yourself, or it'll be forgotten.

16.    Making lists is a super difficult thing to do that you should stop committing to it. You're not a list-maker. 

17.    You're entitled to a break.


18.    The sun isn't bright because you & I have acknowledged its brightness. It just is. It was bright before humans were around to appreciate it, and it will remain bright long after humans have fried ourselves into extinction. It won't stop being bright, simply because I call it dim. No matter what the sun remains bright. 

We remain who we are, regardless of who takes time to notice it. We are wonderful, beautiful and worthy because we just are. Someone else's denial or approval of that does not stop us from being amazing. 

Twitter
Facebook
Instagram

(Many thanks to Tumblr & my wonderful friend Kyra for helping me with these) 

The Moral Dilemna

For just over five months I've been freelance writing for a little extra cash. As a full time university student, with severe procrastination syndrome and a one track mindedness always focused on Netflix, I typically don't work in the school year and save that for summer, in a futile attempt at good grades.

I won't name the company I write for, obviously, as usual I'm not trying to put anyone on blast, just telling my story. I received the monthly budget with about five days to pick some stories, and get back to the editor. This was a weekend a friend of mine was coming to visit, music festivals, bowling and several other activities were planned which means my story ended up getting picked quite close to the deadline leaving me with one I was more than unqualified to write. Tips for freshman girls.

I had to write an article giving freshman girls tips on how to have a successful and "sociable" first year. Being the antisocial cockroach I am, I wrote the piece as best I could and sent it in. A few days later I received an email back asking me to add a few things, expand on the section I'd included about drunk driving which went a little something like "Don't get in a car with someone who is so inebriated they can't clearly say their name," which I felt summed up the entirety of drunk driving pretty clearly, what to do when pictures leak on social media, and various other things completely out of my field of expertise. Instead of passing up this challenge, I added what I was asked and made the best possible article I could.

Fast forward to yesterday, almost two weeks later and I receive the final edit of this email. I'm told it's undergone heavy editing and asked if I will allow them to publish the article with my name still attached to it. After having one look at the sloppy, disjointed, poorly written mistake for journalism the completed article had become I asked them to swiftly take my name off of the article. I don't care if it's published, but it will not be attached to my name. The article was shockingly poor quality.
However, I was also told unless my name stays attached to the piece of work...I don't get paid. That's right. Though both originals of this piece were written by me and the skeleton of the starved written piece that is the final edit is still derived from my basic format, idea and voice, I will not get paid if I opt to have myself removed from the piece as the author.

Here lies the moral dilemma. As a student qualified to do little more than cashier work finding any kind of way to make money doing something I moderately enjoy is exciting. Less exciting when people like this take advantage of young writers simply trying to gain experience in a field they're interested in. Nonetheless, both my parents have Dr in their title. I'm not homeless and I'm not starving, I stood firm and my name won't be put on the article. I don't need their money.

My overall zeal to want to do journalism has all but disappeared as I know things like this aren't unfamiliar in the field, particularly to those who are young and desperate for any sort of foot in the door. I mean I've never been extremely passionate about journalism, it's just always seemed like something I'm good at, so I stuck to it and here presented a way to make a little extra cash doing it. But for now, it looks like I'm through. A chapter closed. I don't know what the next experience will bring but for now this blog becomes the only spot I write & publish anything really.

I mean I've never thought of myself as the world's greatest writer but apparently I'm better at this than some "editors". Not hatin', just statin'. Go figure.

Instagram
Twitter
Tumblr