I Don't Know How to Be Brief: on YouTubers and Insight

    It's been brought to my knowledge that I haven't actually written a proper post in nearly three months. I've actually done pretty well at posting regularly, but then this happened. I'll try to get better, I promise.

    A pretty big thing that has affected me lately is YouTube. Not in a, I really want to make YouTube videos way, although I have done that, but more in a way that I've gotten quite a bit of insight and inspiration from the people and/or web series I've been watching lately on YouTube. So I'll take you on the little journey with me and I apologize for this ridiculous length because I have so much to say on the subject and I could talk for hours about it. 

I'll start with the web series that I have been watching, and I'll try to make this short because I could talk about this forever. It's called the Lizzie Bennet Diaries (which is produced by Hank Green, but we're not going to talk about him otherwise you'd be here for days), and to put it briefly, this show is a modern adaptation of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice told through the video diaries of Elizabeth Bennet, (there is a side channel of Lydia's video diaries, but I'll come back to that.) who goes by Lizzie, who in this adaptation, is a grad student in communications. What I really like about this is it's a way to get to know the classic literature for people who aren't into the classics. I've never actually read Pride and Prejudice (BAD ENGLISH MAJOR!) so this is a really good way to get to know the general storyline in a way that is more relatable. Maybe now that I know the characters and the storyline a bit more, I'll actually get around to reading it one day. I've fallen in love with the characters, and surprisingly, the character I love the most at the moment is the one I absolutely hated at the beginning of the series. And that character would be....Lydia Bennet!

At the beginning, I can sincerely say that I outright despised the character Lydia Bennet. She was a party girl with no boundaries, and in real life that makes me rather annoyed, so of course seeing it on screen would have the same effect. But as the story goes on, we learn SO MUCH about Lydia that it's really hard to hate her. I didn't start watching Lydia's vlogs until about a week ago, and watching those gives so much insight that you don't see from Lizzie's point of view, so it's a really cool thing. I love seeing character development, and Lydia's character development is ridiculously amazing and very well done by the actress who plays her: Mary Kate Wiles. It's so brilliantly done the way that you can see Lydia changing as the show progresses. 

 

So that has definitely been a big part of my life lately. And you know, having super attractive guys on the show doesn't hurt. William Darcy (left) and George Wickham (above), my friends. Not bad to look at. 

The first individual person in my current YouTube list is Christine Riccio, who goes by the username of polandbananas20. 

I somehow came across her video about having long hair, and since I too have ridiculously long hair, I couldn't not watch it. From there, I discovered her love of film and books, which is pretty much the reason why I subscribed because she is just as obsessed with books as I am and she has quite a sense of humour that I highly appreciate.  She has a book channel as well, which is awesome, and her videos are just fabulous. Oh, and I bought a really freaking awesome shirt from her that says, "My Hair is a Weapon, which is pretty much my life story, so that's cool. It's THIS shirt. 

The next few, which should come to no surprise at all, are English twenty something boys. 

We will start with Dan Howell. This picture is actually a pretty accurate representation of him. So Dan's YouTube is danisnotonfire and though his cussing is a little more than I'm usually okay with, I've grown used to it. So viewer discretion if you are under eighteen because it contains some more mature content (language wise). A lot of his videos are just fun things, and I really adore that, but the few videos that are serious are probably my favorites. In the serious ones, (more specifically, his fan-mail and his "The Meaning of Life" videos) he just seems so genuine. In his "The Meaning of Life" video, which you can watch HERE, he talks about how it's just occurred to him that we have ONE life as humans on earth, and so we need to do something that in the long run, is going to make us happy, and it's really inspiring for obvious reasons. In his fan-mail videos, while they do have their humour and a bit of creepiness that comes with all of his videos, it's obvious that making videos is something that he really likes to do and he really appreciates everything that this channel has done for him. It's really important to have that mixture of hilarity and entertainment while still having seriousness when it's necessary. Another thing that I like is he has a video about being left handed which because I am also 99.9% left handed, I can relate too a little too well and it is quite unfortunate. Fun fact: His birthday is 4 days before mine (although he is 3 years older), so I thought that was cool too. He is also addicted to Maltesers which is the English version of Whoppers, so I'll definitely have to try those eventually.

The next on the list is Phil Lester. Another very accurate representation in picture form. I believe that Dan and Phil (amazingphil) are flatmates at the moment. Unlike Dan, Phil hardly ever swears, which I really like. He's hilarious and I love listening to his stories of his childhood. It's rather entertaining. Random facts about Phil: He likes red pandas and lions. I really like his videos as well because they are very relaxed and just talking to the camera about his life, which I really like. Just Phil. Stay cool man. And keep loving red pandas because those are my favorite animals.




This last one's going to be brief because I'll talk some more about him in another post soon, (and by soon, I really hope that I don't mean three months because that is unacceptable, girl.) but here is Charlie McDonnell, also known as charlieissocoollike. He also doesn't swear, like EVER, which I really love.

Besides the fact that he's incredibly adorable (because seriously, just look at that face) and he's friends with Hank Green, there's just so much positivity being emitted off of him and I can't get enough of it. I only started watching his videos yesterday, but already it's made such an impact, so I'm really excited to talk more about it in my next post. To summarize my thoughts on him, he's just so sweet and motivated and excited about what he does, and that makes me excited. His motivation strategies are motivating me to do what I love, and it's all so fabulous that it's really hard not to smile just thinking about it. Most of my opinions on his motivation and everything I'm going to save for next time, but I will tell you one thing because I just need to say it.

He has this strategy that I saw in one of his videos called "Don't Break the Chain,"(he got the idea from a strategy used by Jerry Seinfield) and in his case, he has a three separate charts for exercise, videos, and his feature film that he's working on. The whole point is to make sure that he's being productive every day, and since he marks on the little calendar thing every time he accomplishes what he's trying to accomplish, it's both a metaphorical and literal chain of productivity that he's trying not to break.

Don't Break The Chain 

The video is ^ here if you want to see for yourself what I'm actually talking about.

I'm actually going to try this method for myself and see how it works out in the categories of both writing and exercise, so I'll let you know how that goes later on. You can download and print one HERE if you want to try it out.

So that was, as briefly as I could put it, Charlie McDonnell, who is currently my favorite person on YouTube. More about him to come in the somewhat near future.

swiftaholics, piano therapy, and holiday festivities

Wow? Have I really been in college for over two months now? Crazy stuff there.

So it's been awhile, hasn't it? I suppose that means that it's time to update you on my life. Now where to start my rambles?

I am now the proud owner of the Taylor Swift, "RED" album, and it is the most magnificent thing I have ever heard. This album has almost literally been on repeat since I obtained it on October 23rd. (which just so happens to be the day after it came out. I'm a college student without a car. There really isn't much I can do about that.) These lyrics are absolute perfection and I can't get them out of my head. Kudos to you, Taylor.

A very exciting event occurred yesterday: I played the piano! I am a little obsessed with that instrument, and I don't think I've played to this extent since I left for school in August, so I am kind of on a piano high at the moment. In the music building there are a bunch of practice rooms with pianos in them, so after my class yesterday I just went and played for 40 minutes and it was wonderful. It felt so good and I was feeling very deprived, so getting that out of my system was exactly what I needed. Considering that I haven't really played since August, it was a little rough, but I'm getting the hang of it again, which is absolutely fabulous. Since I have a class in the music building almost every day, (and just my luck, it also happens to be my last class of the day as well) I think this will be my new routine. If nothing else, it'll help me wind down after hours of classes. I apologize for my rambling on that subject, but the piano is kind of a huge part of me and not being able to play on a regular basis has been killing me. I mean, I brought a keyboard with me, but it's really not the same. To sum it up, this has just been really good for me and I am incredibly happy.

There really isn't much else to say. I went and saw the Broadway rendition of "Anything Goes" a few weeks back, which was pretty fabulous. (and the fact that we had some of the same choreography for my senior year musical made me feel pretty dang cool.)

My English class right now is way too easy. I'm not even trying in that class and I am almost positive that I have an A. The fact that I'm an English major may have a little something to do with that. Thankfully, next semester I'll have the starting point english major class, so that will hopefully be a much better experience, because this English 101 class? Not a fan. Besides the fact we won't have class again until after Thankgiving: I'm very okay with that.

This post is so scattered. Just so many things have happened. And despite my previous expectations, I actually did celebrate Halloween and go trick or treating. I was pretty upset at first because I thought I wasn't going to go, and I didn't have a costume anyways, and this was a problem because I can't even remember a time that I didn't at least celebrate Halloween. The costume did end up being very impromptu since I didn't know I was even going trick or treating until five minutes before we left, but it works. I got to go trick or treating and that made me ridiculously happy. I got candy and everything, and then I stayed up until 1 am watching Halloweentown. It was a good holiday.

(See, I went with my floor. While yes, we came up with very very impromptu and lame nerd costumes, it was much better than nothing. It's not like I had a lot of choices within the contents of a closet much smaller than I'm used to.)










Have I covered these past few months well enough? Halloween, Anything Goes, being an English major, piano, and Taylor Swift? Yes, I think so.

And now onto one of my favorite parts of this blog. Sharing what I've been listening to. Don't mind the fact that it's pretty much the entire "RED" album (along with a very select few others). I'm not sure how I managed to limit this list to only a few of my favorites, considering the fact that I'm in love with the entire album.

The Ever-changing Playlist

All Too Well- Taylor Swift

I Almost Do- Taylor Swift

Girl At Home- Taylor Swift

Treacherous- Taylor Swift

The Moment I Knew- Taylor Swift

State of Grace (Acoustic Version)- Taylor Swift

Innocent- Taylor Swift. (yes, a song not from the RED album. Shocker.) 

I Fell In Love Once- Chase Coy (because he is precious. look him up.)

Little Lion Man- Mumford and Sons

My Own Little World- Matthew West

Sing It Out -Switchfoot (and pretty much the entire Hello Hurricane album. It's lovely.)

Okay. I'll stop now. I could go on forever, but I should probably save some for later.

And I will exit with a couple of quotes that I saw on my Pinterest board a while back. (I've finally joined the bandwagon and I am happily addicted.)

"Let your faith be bigger than your fear."

"Keep calm and shine on."

Have a marvelous day, and don't forget to be a shining light to whoever shall cross your path. Shine on.

~Sophie Leigh

College: The First Month

Considering that I didn't have any classes until 12:30 today, I had a little time, so I thought I should talk about school. More specifically, I thought I should talk about college.

I have been in school for nearly a month now. This is absolute craziness. It feels like I was just a terrified senior at my new school, and now I'm a freshman at my new school, but strangely not quite as terrified, considering the thought that this is college, and not just high school anymore. I find it odd that I'm not scared. Maybe the fact that my house is only 30 minutes away is some comfort. I'm not really sure where all that unexpected bravery came from, but I'm glad that I have it.

To put it briefly, or not so briefly, knowing me and my ability to write far more than necessary, I love college. Even though I'm barely a month in, I know I chose the right school, which is ridiculously calming. I love the fact that this is a christian school. It makes things a little less scary, and it makes me feel safer knowing that most of the people here share similar morals. I love the size of this school. Only 4000 students, and the campus is small enough that I won't get lost. Especially for me, someone known to be directionally challenged and someone who has the capability of getting lost very easily, this is important.

And now we approach a subject that is a little deeper. Friends. In my first three years of high school, I was pretty lacking in the friends department, which is pretty much the reason I transferred for senior year. Now in senior year, at my new school, I got pretty close to some people, and honestly, I got closer to them within a year than I had in numerous years at my other school. I think that says something about the quality of friends we are talking about here. So how does this relate to college? I think one of my fears about coming to college was not being able to make solid friends, along with not being able to keep the friendships I already have because of long-distance (even though it's really not that long. I live half an hour away from my school).  I already had to start over at my new school in making friends and starting fresh, so would I really be able to do that again, after only a year of knowing these people? While I do still keep in touch with one of my close friends; texting and keeping up to date via facebook, twitter, and instagram, college is a place for new relationships. I'm not anywhere near willing to let my current relationships die, but college is a place for new relationships, so it's important not to hold onto those current ones so tight that you don't open up space for new people.

Even though college is giving me amazing opportunities for new friendships, the high school ones are important as well. I apologize in advance for this photo bomb. I couldn't choose just one photo to showcase my spectacular senior year.









I think the thing that makes me happiest about college is that I do have friends here, which amazes me. Not even a month in, and I have friends that I feel comfortable with, which is pretty big for me since I'm pretty quiet and uncomfortable around people if I don't know them well.

This is us. Me, Abby, and Christine. These are the girls that I already have become friends with and have become close with, even with not even a month into college. I feel so blessed to have met them. I also had to include a photo of dorm retreat because it was super fun and I love the girls on my floor.

Another exciting thing about college? Activities. And namely, dance guild. I have always loved dancing, but I never really got the chance to participate in it because I am not particularly good since I haven't actually had a dance lesson since I was 5, so that really hasn't given me a chance to improve. I mean, I've done musical theatre, which does include dancing, and I love it. So the fact that I get to participate in dance without having to be fabulous at it makes me so happy. I am doing Lyrical Dance Guild, which is definitely my forte. It reminds me of musical theatre along with dancing, so that is just the icing on the cake to my college experience.

Wow, I'm sorry. I talk a lot. At least you got pictures this time. That's an improvement.

The Ever-changing Playlist

Give Me Love/Parting Glass- Ed Sheeran

Ronan- Taylor Swift

Begin Again- Taylor Swift

You'll Be in My Heart- Tarzan (I like Disney, okay?)

I See the Light- Tangled

A Beautiful Mess- Jason Mraz 

Ain't it Good- Children of Eden ( I did this musical in 2010. Not really sure how this popped into my head right now.)

The Chain- Ingrid Michaelson (Speaking of which, I am going to her concert on October 1st. I am muy excited. Muy means "very" in Spanish, in case you didn't know.)


All in all, college is going very well. :) It's a lot of work, but I love it.

~Sophie Leigh

The Fault in Our Stars

Usually I don't post more than once a month. But I just have something that I can't help but share.

I just read the book, The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. Now, I love books. They are one of my favorite things in the world. But it has been a long time since I have been so hooked on a book. For the longest time, the Harry Potter books were my favorite books ever. Nothing surpassed the love I had for them, but then I read this, and now The Fault in Our Stars is my new favorite book by far.

I smiled, I cried, and I wanted to scream. That's how much I love this book. And after getting it from the library and just finishing it two days ago, I already want to buy it and read it again. That' s how in love with this book and this author I am. It's such a tragic love story and everything about it is perfectly imperfect. Some of the quotes from the book are just flawless, and I can't even contain my emotion about them.

"That's the thing about pain. It demands to be felt."

"I lit up like a Christmas tree, Hazel Grace."

"My thoughts are stars I can't fathom into constellations."

"What a slut time is. She screws everybody."

"I fell in love the way you fall asleep; slowly, then all at once. 

I have so much love for this book.

The Ever-changing playlist

 We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together- Taylor Swift

Fearless- Taylor Swift

This- Ed Sheeran

Confidence- Teddy Geiger

Jeanette- Chase Coy

It's a short list today. I've been writing a lot the past couple days, so I've been listening to the last three people a lot on Pandora. The acoustic music really helps me concentrate. 

I've been sick with a cold and cough for the past two weeks. Hopefully it goes away before school starts back up again.  This is definitely why I've been inside writing and reading instead of enjoying the end of summer. 

So I suppose I will leave you with a quote I found a few days ago:

"There is nothing more beautiful than the way the ocean refuses to stop kissing the shoreline, no matter how many times it is sent away."

I hope you get the chance to inspire someone today!

~Sophie Leigh

 

 

 

 

 

Olympic pride meets too much genius

Its that time of the month again....blogging time!

So what's been up with me? I had college orientation and I just received my schedule for school. Yikes. Makes everything seem a bit more real.

Usually I don't include videos other than music, but watching the Olympics has changed that. Olympic gymnastics, to be more specific. I don't know whether or not you follow the U.S. team, but I sure do and I can't contain myself. If you do follow U.S. gymnastics, I think you know what I'm going to talk about. McKayla Maroney's vault. It was days ago and I'm still not over that. Somehow the judges managed to deduct points from this, but I'm really not sure how. It was utter flawlessness. Just take a look at this sheer perfection.

I've been inspired to write again, but whenever I actually have inspiration, I have no idea what to write and everything turns out junky. And I have about five story ideas right now and I'm currently working on two, but I don't have time for this. New ideas for new stories need to stop popping into my head.  Welcome to the life of a writer.


I've decided to change things up a bit. Instead of including the music right here, I'm just going to give a list of the music that I've been listening to lately, and if you feel up to it, give them a listen.

The Ever-changing Playlist

World's Gunna End- Megan and Liz

Bad for Me- Megan and Liz (The song that is on the new Macy's commercial! Yay, they've come so far. I feel like a proud mama.)

Sort Of- Ingrid Michaelson

Carry On- Fun.

Ed Sheeran- Wake Me Up (his lyrics are heavenly)

The Bird and the Worm- Owl City

And speaking of music, I have some spectacular news that has to do with me, three amazing musical groups/singers, and concerts. Regina Spektor, Ingrid Michaelson, and Fun. will be having concerts at my school this year. The best part is that tickets are 20 dollars or less. YES. Life really doesn't get better than that.

a world of hatred vs random acts of kindness

I want to apologize in advance for the intensity of this post. But...

The inhumanity of some people is unbelievable. That shooting in Colorado. In a movie theatre of all places. A movie theatre, really? We can't even go to a movie anymore without having to worry about our safety? It's absolutely ridiculous. Some people are so cruel. It's really sad actually. And even things on twitter and other internet sites...the negativity and the cruelty is ridiculous. That is why I've made it my goal to make people smile. Negativity is everywhere, and I want to be one of those people that can cancel out that negativity. I want to be a good influence and an encourager in a world of negativity and hatred. I've always been a positive person and I know that is one of my strengths, so I want to use that to my advantage and influence people with strength.

I saw a post on twitter a few days ago-multiple posts actually- about people who have committed suicide because they were bullied to such an extreme. While this is nothing new, it just really hit me this time. And then a certain post spoke the words that summed everything up perfectly.

 "Nobody knows just how much words can hurt. STOP BULLYING. How many deaths do we need until people get it?"

That was the line that got me. People are dying and killing themselves because they don't feel loved. And it happens all the time, which is no small tragedy. That is absolutely unacceptable. The world doesn't see that as a problem? People are killing themselves, and yet people still don't get that bullying is a serious problem. That's is exactly what is wrong with the world. People just still don't get it.

And this is exactly why I've made my goal to make people smile and to make people feel loved. I want the bullying thing not to exist. And while I can't prevent it all on my own, I can help. I really wish I could give a hug to everybody who feels unloved. While I can't realistically do that,  I can give love and compliments and positivity to those I do come in contact with and that alone can make a difference. It's all about random acts of kindness. You don't know people's stories. As far as you know, someone could be contemplating suicide and by talking to them kindly and being friendly, you may save their life.  You never know. What you say can make or break a day. And I don't know about you, but knowing that I made someone's day better totally makes my day. And saving a life.... if that doesn't make your day, nothing can.

So in conclusion, be kind to everyone because you never know how much of a difference you can make in someone's life just by participating in random acts of kindness and by being a friend.



And now for the weekly (monthly...now, by the look of it.) songs.

  

(To go with the theme of today's post. Just a few lines that totally relate to the whole message. "When every other light goes out, to shine for you's my specialty." "And you know I'll be your friend even when its not the trend." That's what it is all about. Being a friend even when the whole world is thinking otherwise. And I understand that this is Nickelodon, but don't judge. I'm still a child at heart.)

 More Nickelodon. Figures.

And two by Ariana Grande (who is on Nickelodeon.) Anyone sensing a trend here?

Hey, look at this. Ed Sheeran. NOT Nickelodeon. That's new.

Anything else? No. Good. Don't want to overload you on songs. But I'm obsessed with music, so that's just how life works for me. I have too many songs on my mind that I need to share.

Please take my message to heart. Random acts of kindness can save a life. So go do good.

~Sophie Leigh

faith and taking steps

on Sunday and Monday, the seniors got to lead the church service, which was really cool and I had a great time. Ever since then, I've had worship songs stuck in my head, which is so good for me since that doesn't usually happen. That was a big step for me. My faith has been a bit shaky for the past few years, but this year its come back stronger then ever, and I have to thank my friends at my school for that. Without them, I'm not really sure how I'd be right now. So thank you. :)

So I'm kind of switching up my genres right now and showcasing some things that I don't usually share. My friends have me listening to WayFM and everything and now I am hooked on Christian rock, which has never appealed to me until my faith started growing and youth group ended. But now that I've taken a listen, I love it and I don't know why I didn't like it before. I think the whole faith thing just kind of scared me. But now I'm back in my faith and stronger than ever, so just take a listen if you'd like.

Super powerful song right here. You Won't Relent. I love it so much and its been in my head since Thursday's rehearsal.

And we didn't sing this one, but I sang this the last time I was in the worship band for the regular church service, and its been in my head all day. Break Every Chain. I seriously have at least five songs in my head at the same time right now and I don't know which one to listen to.


I feel so blessed right now. It is incredible.

~Sophie