The Time’s Up Movement

My social media was flooded this morning with news about the Time’s Up movement. Seeing so many people united in the belief that it is well past time for women to stop being victims of sexual assault was the ray of sunshine I needed on a rather dark day.

True feminism is something I believe in so fiercely, and this silent protest started a conversation that was massively overdue. As a young woman with strong opinions, I feel that it is my responsibility to add my voice to the conversation, no matter how few or how many people will hear me.

For starters, I believe the deck is stacked against women from a very young age. We teach girls that they have to achieve this fictitious level of perfection that is impossible to reach in order to be deemed worthy. We teach her that she has to be this dainty, innocent thing, but her main goal is to attract boys. While I was growing up, my older relatives would frequently tell me to change aspects of myself because “boys don’t like girls like that.” I know that I am not alone in this experience.

Teaching girls to operate under the mindset that making boys like her is so damaging. I have seen this happen far too many times. After years of being picked apart and criticized, eventually these young women give in. They become “what boys want,” and not only does this result in society losing an individual, she then gets shamed for turning into what she was taught to be. Suddenly, she is labeled as “promiscuous.”

These toxic expectations of women need to stop. They result in too many women being taken advantage of in both personal and professional settings. Historically, women who have come forward and reported sexual harassment haven’t been taken seriously because of the belief that she exists for the man. When she isn’t being branded as a liar, she is told that she was too “slutty” and that it was her fault, or that she should be grateful that someone found her attractive at all.

I was lucky to have been raised by feminist parents, but many girls don’t share this fortune. In the midst of being told who she should be, we need strong voices that tell her she is worthy all on her own. I am so grateful for the Time’s Up movement, and for all of the influential women sharing such a positive message. May the women after us never have to experience a “Me Too” story.

Coping With Bad Days

I have been struggling with depression for a few years now, and I am well acquainted with bad days. Learning how to successfully cope with depressive episodes has been a lot of trial and error, but I have made a lot of progress.

Dealing with depression is a very personal thing, and there is no one universally correct solution. If you happen to be looking for any methods, I might be able to help you.

 

Here are a few ways I cope with bad days.

 

• Writing a Journal

I have found that writing a journal is extremely effective. I have one journal completely dedicated to positive thoughts and self-discovery. Writing in this journal has helped to change my perspective of myself. When you suffer with depression, you end up getting a negatively warped view of who you are as a person, and you can deem yourself as unworthy. The beauty of writing positive thoughts is that you can go back and read it, and realize that you are not nearly as flawed as your mental illness has led you to believe.

 

• Baking

I baked and decorated this cake for Halloween of 2017, and I am quite proud of it.

Within the past year, I have discovered how much I love baking and cake decorating. I get so much joy out of sharing baked goods that brighten others’ days. I find something about experimenting with new methods and recipes to be extremely therapeutic. I began decorating cakes fairly recently, and nothing makes me feel better on a bad day than creating something.

 

• Learn Something New

Going through a depressive episode can cause you to feel stuck in an endless, meaningless routine. It’s not always easy to muster up any kind of motivation during bad days, but if you can, learning something is a great way to break a bleak cycle, and introduce you to a brand new world. I wanted a change of pace one day, so I decided to start learning German. I am so glad I decided to broaden my horizons, as it has given me something new to look forward to.

There are tons of apps you can use to learn something new that you are interested in. If you happen to be looking into learning a new language, I highly recommend downloading Duolingo. It is an app that provides its’ users with free lessons, and I love everything it stands for.

 

• Entertainment

Sometimes, I think entertainment is the only thing that keeps me sane. During hard times, nothing is as relaxing as sitting back and watching a good movie or TV show. My favorite genres are comedy and fantasy. It’s nice to escape your world for a little while, and go to a magical land, or having a well deserved laugh.

Here are a few of my favorites in no particular order:

1. Beauty and the Beast (Live Action)
2. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
3. Tangled
4. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
5. Harry Potter Franchise
6. Bob’s Burgers
7. South Park
8. Criminal Minds (Okay, this one’s a bit dark, but I am fascinated by criminal psychology.)

I am aware that most of these are considered children’s movies, and that is because I think it is so freeing to temporarily forget about adult responsibilities, and remember what it is like to have a child’s optimism. I could probably write entire blog posts about why I love each one of the movies or TV shows above, but I’ll spare you for now.

 

• Read a Book

There is something so magical about books. I love being transported to a world that you have an element of creative control over. You can stick to comfortable books that you know you love, or you can pick up a brand new book and throw yourself into a new adventure. Whatever you choose, you are guaranteed to have a temporary escape from everyday life.

My favorite book to read when I am feeling a bit down is one of the books from the Harry Potter franchise. They provide me with comfort, nostalgia, and an enchanting place to get lost in.

 

• Call Someone You Love

I know from firsthand experience that depression can make you feel worthless to everyone else. I promise you this is a lie. Calling someone you love will brighten both of your days, and it can take your mind off of whatever is troubling you. I personally love talking to my brother when I’m sad. He makes me laugh no matter what.

 

• Spend Quality Time With a Pet

Whenever I’m feeling down, spending time with my dog just makes everything better. Whether we are playing a game of fetch or curling up on the couch, he brightens my life.

 

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If you are having a hard time right now, I hope this post was able to help you in one way or another.

If your depression is severe and you need help, go here. Even if you are unable to see it now, I promise your life is so precious. I’m rooting for you and your recovery.

 

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Thank you for reading. Let me know in the comments what you like to do to make a bad day a little better.

The Truth About Fairy Tales

Growing up, I was and still am a huge fan of fairy tales. I was enchanted by the idea of a happy ending, and dazzled by all of the protagonists’ extraordinary adventures. Before I could read, I was constantly asking my parents to read fairy tales to me, and I would watch beloved Disney movies on repeat. Fairy tales are such an innocent part of most people’s childhoods, but these well known stories don’t have such squeaky clean origins.

Now, if you’re anything like me, you are endlessly curious and fascinated by history, no matter how disturbing it may be. Here are just a few descriptions of classic fairy tales before they were tweaked to be appropriate for children.

 

The Little Mermaid

This family friendly story of a mermaid seeking adventure and love on land, and finding success despite a few obstacles did not start off so PG.

The original story was written in 1837 by Hans Christian Andersen. In the original story, the little mermaid feared her fate of turning to sea foam after she died. Her ticket to escaping her harsh fate was to obtain a human soul. In order to achieve this goal, she would have to marry a man who loved her more than anything. If the man did not marry her, she would die.

After setting her eyes on a handsome prince, the little mermaid ventured off to make a deal with the sea witch. The sea witch promises the little mermaid will be able to walk, but every step will feel as if she is striding on sharp knives. The little mermaid so desperately wanted to shed her tail that she agreed, and allowed the sea witch cut out her tongue as payment.

Alas, the little mermaid is not loved more than anything by the prince, as he weds another woman. In order to save her own life, the little mermaid must stab the prince. The little mermaid loves the prince too much to kill him, thus ensuring her death on land and in the ocean.

 

Cinderella

The core of Cinderella’s original story is the same: she is abused by a wicked stepmother, she meets a prince who pursues her, and lives happily ever after. The parts in the middle of the early stories are what is disturbing.

In the original story, Cinderella follows her governess’ orders and murders her stepmother by snapping her neck. Her father then marries the governess, who views Cinderella as a slave and banishes her to the kitchens. Cinderella is later granted a wish that lets her attend and fit in to a royal party. While leaving the party, Cinderella loses her slipper and is sought after by the king. The slipper fits, and this unhinged version of Cinderella lives happily ever after.

If that were story was not unsettling enough, other early versions are more persistent on testing their boundaries. In one version, the stepmother cuts off pieces of Cinderella’s stepsisters’ feet in order to ensure they will fit into the slipper. In another version, the sisters cut off pieces of their own feet, and lovely little songbirds peck out the sisters’ eyes.

Charming.

 

Sleeping Beauty

In the original tale, the princess’ eternal slumber is caused by a splinter. Her father is heartbroken when she will not wake up, so he abandons the castle with her still in it. A king from a different kingdom found the castle with the princess’ body still laying unconscious inside of it. The king thinks she is so beautiful that he rapes her, and unknowingly impregnates her with twins. The princess delivers her babies while still slumbering, and one of the babies sucks the splinter out of her finger, causing the princess to awaken.

Later on, the queen finds out about the king’s infidelity, and demands that the twins are cooked and fed to him. The cook secretly hides the children, and serves goat in their place. Thinking the twins are gone, the queen then tries to throw the princess into a fire. The king stops his wife, and burns her alive instead. The king then marries the princess, and lives “happily ever after” in a really twisted kind of way.

Hansel and Gretel

In the original story, Hansel and Gretel are good children who are betrayed and abandoned by their greedy parents who no longer wanted to feed them. The siblings wandered through the woods until they stumbled upon a house. The children knock upon the door and an old lady answers. She allows them to stay with her, but warns them that her husband is a cannibal who will consume them if he discovers them.

The husband comes home and beats his wife after he finds the children. He then makes Gretel his slave and holds Hansel captive in a pig sty while he gets fattened up for the husband’s meal. The husband leaves for a bit, and asks his wife to watch the children. The wife gets drunk, and the children slit her throat and steal her fortunes before escaping.

The husband returns to find his dead wife unaccompanied by the children. He chases them and eventually catches up with the children. Hansel and Gretel trick the husband into falling off of a bridge and drowning.

Eventually, Hansel and Gretel find and forgive their parents, and they live off of stolen fortunes.

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There you have it, those were the origins of just a few fairy tales. I hope your childhood hasn’t been ruined. In all honesty, I think it’s incredible that the creators of the fairy tales we know today were able to make such wholesome things out of pure horror.

Thank you so much for reading, and I hope you found this topic to be as fascinating as I did.

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Source 1

Source 2

Thoughts on Thursday: The Double Standards of Feminism

For anyone who might be confused about what feminism is, it is defined as the social, political, and economic equality of the sexes.

I absolutely believe that the above definition of feminism is the morally correct way to view the sexes. I also believe that an alarmingly large amount of people are calling themselves feminists, but their actions say otherwise.

Allow me to explain.

1. Feminists do not hate men.

The very definition of feminism contradicts that notion. I am so tired of reading articles that group men into one category: the villain. Men are not inferior to women, nor are women inferior to men. The whole point of feminism is to achieve equality, not revenge or superiority.

2. Feminists do not make other women feel less than.

A stay at home wife and/or mother is just as deserving of respect as career women. Sure, historically women have been forced to take on a more submissive role, but today if a woman is lucky enough to choose her path and she chooses to stay at home, we as feminists need to respect that. This hypothetical woman is not smearing the image of feminism in any way by making a choice that feminism gave her the right to make in the first place.

I am not saying that as feminists, you automatically have to agree with all women. I am however saying that feminism isn’t one size fits all, and that is the whole point of it in the first place. All women deserve the right to choose, and all women deserve respect.

3. Feminists do not ignore men’s issues.

Men have historically had it easier than women, and largely still do today, but that doesn’t mean they are never mistreated. There is such a stigma around men suffering from depression that most of them do not seek help. Because of this, 70% of suicides are committed by men. Mental health is not the only ignored issue men face. One fourth of men have been victims of domestic violence, yet the number of safe houses for men falls incredibly short.

I believe that as feminists, it is our responsibility to shed just as much light on men’s issues as women’s issues.

I don’t want this post to come off as me bashing the people I described above because even though I think they are misguided, I truly do believe their hearts are still in the right place. I will call myself a feminist until I am blue in the face, but I think it is important that we don’t stray from feminism’s true definition. Feminism has brought so many positive changes to the world, and it is so disheartening when people don’t realize the importance of it because of misinformation.

Comment below and tell me what your opinions are about the double standards of feminism.

As always, thank you so much for reading.

2018 New Year’s Resolutions

We are just hours away from saying farewell to 2017, which means many people are looking back on the year and identifying what needs to be changed. I, however, am not a huge fan of the tradition of making New Year’s resolutions.

The new year is often viewed as some sort of magical do over button, and I think that largely misses the point of the holiday. I am all about self reflection and wanting to improve, but the desire for bettering yourself comes from within, not from the change of the calendar. People go into the new year with the expectation of perfection rather than improvement, and they do not always realize that goals take a lot of work to maintain. Just look at how many people give up on their resolution(s) before January is even over, and then end up looking back upon the year that they were so excited for with distaste.

I am not writing this to discourage you from making a resolution, I am just trying to remind you that self improvement is not a scheduled event. I am not in any way saying now is a bad time to improve yourself, but I think it is important to remember you need discipline in order to do so.

I actually have one resolution, myself. My only goal for 2018 is continuation. I want to continue my quest for learning as much as I can, and achieving goals I have had set for myself for quite some time. I am halfway across a bridge right now, and my goal isn’t even to get to the other side by the end of 2018. As long as I make my way down the bridge as far as I can, I will be happy.

I want you to let me know in the comments what your opinions of New Year’s resolutions are, and if you have any of your own for 2018.

Thank you so much for reading, and I wish you a happy New Year.

Thoughts on Thursday: The Mandela Effect

Before I begin, I want to apologize for posting this a day late. I was having some technical issues, but all is resolved. Today’s subject is truly fascinating, and I hope you enjoy learning about it.

If you do not know what the Mandela Effect is, it is a phenomenon of mass amounts of people collectively having the same false memory pertaining to specific events and facts. This phenomenon is called the “Mandela Effect” because many people remembered Nelson Mandela passing away in the 1980’s, when in reality, he died in 2013.

Some popular examples of the Mandela Effect include:

⁃ The iconic Darth Vader quote, “Luke, I am your father” was never said. The real quote is “No, I am your father.”

⁃ Jiffy peanut butter does not exist. It has always been Jif.

⁃ The Evil Queen in Snow White never said “Mirror, mirror on the wall.” The correct quote is “Magic mirror on the wall.”

⁃ The tip of Pikachu’s tail has never been black.

⁃ Chartreuse is not a pink-ish purple color, it is a shade of green.

⁃ Since 1942, Thanksgiving has always been on the fourth Thursday of November. Many people remember it being celebrating on the third Thursday.

Many of the examples listed above are simple, yet a lot of people become understandably startled to find out a solid memory of theirs has “changed.”

There are many theories that attempt to explain this phenomenon, but there is no one proven explanation for the Mandela Effect.

Here are just a few theories:

⁃ Societal Reinforcement: This theory is a lot like the telephone game on a much larger scale. Basically, one person gets it wrong and it creates a domino effect.

⁃ Alternate Reality: There are many theories about alternate universes, so I will just be sticking to the basics. People believe that these facts and events occurred differently in another universe. One theory is that universes exist as bubbles, so to speak, and these bubbles can bump into each other and change our timeline.

⁃ Time Travel: If you’re into Sci-Fi, you’re probably familiar with the idea that if someone were to go back in time, they could easily change our timeline. The idea is that someone went back and slightly changed something, causing us to misremember events.

My Thoughts:

I was actually flabbergasted when I found out Thanksgiving is not celebrated on the third Thursday of November, and never has been in my lifetime. I have such a clear memory of my mother driving me to school when I was in early elementary school, and telling me Thanksgiving was always celebrated on the third Thursday. I specifically remember being confused on Thanksgiving of 2014 because I didn’t know why it was suddenly being celebrated on the fourth Thursday. I asked my mom about it, and she said she has always remembered it being celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November. Looking back at the situation, I think there is a very logical explanation. My mom was probably tired that morning and accidentally told me the wrong week, or being so young, I probably had forgotten what she had said and kind of filled the gap with incorrect information.

I personally believe this phenomenon is caused by psychological and societal elements. To me, the alternate reality theory is too shaky and inconsistent to full heartedly believe. The problem with the time travel theory is that even if it is invented in the future and somebody goes back and changes our timeline, we would all be victims of that change. It just wouldn’t make sense that some people would remember it one way, and others existing on the same timeline would remember it another way.

Our memories are not nearly as reliable as we would like to believe they are. Scientists have actually found that encouraging an eyewitness to remember a lot of details can cause them to remember things that never happened. Our brains do this in order to complete our memories. Your brain simply fills the holes in your memory with borrowed bits from another memory. It is so easy to have two memories get crossed in your brain and the result is a new, incorrect memory.

In my opinion, the limits of the human mind are to blame for false memories. I am in no way saying I don’t think alternate realities exist or that time travel is definitely impossible, I just don’t believe they are the cause of the Mandela Effect.

There you have it, those are my thoughts on the Mandela Effect. I want to hear your opinions. Do you share any of the false memories I listed, or do you have a false memory that I did not list? Tell me what you think about the Mandela Effect in the comments.

As always, thank you so much for reading.

Three old Fashioned Medical Practices That Will Make You Grateful For Modern Science

Hello everyone, and welcome back to another blog post. I hope you all had a wonderful holiday. I unfortunately ended up getting sick. I think it’s just a cold or a flu bug, but I feel terrible. Nevertheless, the blog must go on!

I thought about writing a sick day survival guide, but I wanted something a bit more interesting. So, I decided to do a bit of research and write about old fashioned medical treatments.

I am very grateful to be alive in the age of modern science and medicine, but our ancestors were not so lucky. From doctors prescribing cocaine, to cannibalism being used as a medical treatment, the history of medicine is bizarre to say the least. Here are a few old fashioned medical treatments to destroy any sense of longing to live in the past that you may currently have.

1.The Great Binge

From roughly 1870 – 1914, narcotics were widely available for a variety of different reasons, but we are just going to look at the medical side of this. This was a period of time when young children were given morphine to soothe their coughs and cocaine drops were used to provide relief to pesky toothaches. In this odd time in history, heroin was used to help with withdrawal symptoms due to other drugs. What a time to be alive! (That was sarcasm, kiddos. Please don’t do drugs.)

2.Cannibalism

I’m going to make this as non-graphic as possible, but it’s still really gross, so maybe don’t read this part if you are particularly queasy.

Cannibalism had been used as medical treatment for thousands of years. Ancient Romans drank the blood of departed gladiators. Blood was drank from victims of sudden departure in sixteenth century Europe, as it was believed that the spirit would stay briefly trapped in the physical body, and the living could draw benefits from it.

Blood was not the only human remain used for medical purposes. In the eighteenth century, a popular medical belief was that human flesh could heal venomous bites or general pain if wrapped around the infected area as a bandage. Human fat was also used by rubbing it on skin to soothe gout and heal cuts and bruises.

If time travel ever becomes a thing, I think I’ll pass on visiting the Victorian era.

3.The Tapeworm Diet

The tapeworm diet is also pretty disgusting, so no hard feelings if you don’t want to read this section, either.

The tapeworm diet became popular in the early 1900s, and consisted of a person swallowing a tapeworm in pill form, and waiting for it to reach full maturity in their stomach so it would eat a portion of whatever its host ate. It somehow gets worse. The tapeworm which can grow up to 30 feet in length eventually has to be excreted. Not only is this beyond disturbing, it is extremely dangerous. Tapeworms can cause illnesses ranging in severity from headaches to dementia.

The sad thing is people still attempt this today in 2017. The possibility (not even backed up by science, I might add) of being thin is not worth all of the very real consequences associated with this “diet.” Eat healthy, exercise, and take care of yourself. Fad diets never work.

Those are a few strange medical practices throughout history, and I hope you are just as grateful for modern times as I am.

Stay tuned for more posts about lifestyle, pop culture, and art. Stay healthy, and as always, thank you so much for reading.

Little Known Facts About Christmas

Before I begin writing the core of this post, I understand that religion is a sensitive subject, and I am not trying to disrespect or discourage anyone’s beliefs. This post is my attempt to share little known information that I find to be fascinating, and does not necessarily contain my personal opinions.

Christmas is a combination of a religious holiday and the secular mass commercialization of modern day culture. Because of its’ wide range of tangled history, there are a lot of myths and buried facts associated with the holiday. Hopefully you have just as much fun as I did learning about the history of Christmas.

Without any further ado, here are a few facts about Christmas you may not know:

1. Pagan Roots:

Many people today know Christmas to be the day Christians celebrate the birth of their savior, Jesus Christ, but many of today’s modern traditions have pagan roots. For example, the Christmas tree is perhaps the most popular Christmas icon, and it has nothing to do with the birth of Jesus. During the winter solstice, Pagans would celebrate the worst of winter being over as they anticipated spring. They would often decorate their homes with trees as a reminder of the spring season they were eagerly waiting for.

According to Philip Shaw, a researcher of early Germanic language and Old English at Leicester University, Christians did not approve of Pagans, but they were fascinated by them and wanted to preserve their traditions, which is why we most likely still incorporate their traditions into a religious holiday.

2. Jesus’ Metaphorical Birth:

The Bible never mentions when Jesus was born, and early Christians didn’t really mind. According to Stephen Nissenbaum, author of “The Battle for Christmas” early Christians believed Jesus was a spirit, rather than a physical human being. The morphing of the Pagan celebration and Christian holiday hadn’t occurred until the fourth century. Nissenbaum said “If you want to show that Jesus was a real human being just like every other human being, not just somebody who appeared like a hologram, then what better way to think of him being born in a normal, humble human way than to celebrate his birth?”

Whether or not Jesus existed as a man is still debated upon, but most historians who believe in the physical presence of Jesus believe he was actually born in Spring.

3. The Original Day of Gift Giving:

When you think of Christmas, you most likely think of gift giving. Christmas, however, did not include gifts until the Victorian Era. New Year’s Day was when everyone eagerly awaited gifts given to them as tokens of happiness and blessings for the entire year. The mid 1800s is when Queen Victoria popularized the idea of giving Christmas gifts by presenting them to her family on Christmas Eve.

4. Christmas Music:

The first “Christmas” songs were sung thousands of years ago in Europe, but they were songs to celebrate the Winter Solstice. Later on, Christians adopted the tradition, but made the songs about their faith in Jesus.

Today, Silent Night is the most recorded Christmas carol in history, and White Christmas is the best selling Christmas song of all time. Meanwhile, the ever popular Christmas song, Jingle Bells, was originally meant to be a Thanksgiving Song.

5. A Brief History of Santa Claus:

Santa Claus was originally supposed to be a disciplinary figure, rather than a jolly one. Santa Claus is based off of the legend of a generous man named St. Nicholas. Saint Nicholas is believed to have dedicated his life to giving to the poor. The creation of the modern look of Santa is credited to Fred Mizen, who designed him for a Coca-Cola ad in 1930. In fact, because of their massive popularity, Coca-Cola has been widely credited with modernizing the Santa we know today.

There you have it, those were just a few quick facts about Christmas. I had so much fun researching material for this post, and I hope you learned something new about this joyous holiday. Again, so many things in history have been misinterpreted or distorted, and I am in no way trying to change or disprove anyone’s faith.

Merry Christmas, and thank you so much for reading.

Sources:

https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.livescience.com/25779-christmas-traditions-history-paganism.html

https://www.whychristmas.com/customs/carols_history.shtml

https://list25.com/25-bizarre-interesting-facts-christmas/

http://www.history.com/topics/christmas/santa-claus

http://www.coca-colacompany.com/stories/coke-lore-santa-claus

Thoughts on Thursday: Net Neutrality

Welcome to Thoughts on Thursday. In this series of blog posts, I will be giving you my opinions on any kind of thought provoking topics such as current events, conspiracy theories, pop culture, natural anomalies, etc.

For today’s Thoughts on Thursday, I will be discussing Net Neutrality.

If you do not know what Net Neutrality is, it is a principle that states Internet Service Providers (ISPs) must provide equal accessibility of data for every user. ISPs are unable to discriminate against users, websites, platforms, or content. Net Neutrality stops ISPs from blocking websites they deem unnecessary, charging more for the use of certain websites, and slowing down a website’s competitors in exchange of payment. In June of 2016, a federal court of appeals ruled in favor of Net Neutrality in the attempt to keep the internet free of corruption.

On December 14, 2017, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted to repeal Net Neutrality.

Net Neutrality is so important because it keeps the internet open and fair. The internet is not just for entertainment anymore, many people use it to create jobs for themselves or improve their current jobs through online ordering and advertisements. Multi million dollar companies such as Amazon, Google, and Uber would not exist today without the internet, and it’s scary to think an ISP could have stopped these companies from taking off and providing jobs.

Jobs are not the only thing at stake here. Net Neutrality protects our freedom of information. If an ISP decides they completely disagree with a political party, they can block all traffic from going to news sources in favor of their political party’s opponents. The United States is already so politically divided, can you imagine what could happen if you are only granted one side of information?

While things are not looking good for Net Neutrality, the battle is not over yet. This case still has to be taken to a federal court. If you are interested in contacting your local representatives, here is how.

When it comes to controversial issues, I like to look at it from every side, but I cannot find one single reason to demolish Net Neutrality.

I am in no way writing this to disrespect anyone’s opinions, and I hope this post will inspire an open and mature conversation.

Stay tuned for more Thoughts on Thursdays, lifestyle posts, displays of art, and so much more.

Thank you so much for reading.

Last Minute Gift Giving Guide

Christmas is less than one week away (yay!) and now is the time that panic sets in due to not having all of your gifts bought, wrapped, or even thought out yet. Fret not, I am here to give you a last minute gift giving guide.

Lately I have been getting everything done with plenty of time to spare, but I haven’t always been like this. I don’t know if I’m simply growing out of my procrastinating ways, or if it’s just my anxiety that stops me from waiting until the last second, but I am definitely not a stranger to buying gifts with only a few hours to spare. Without any further ado, here is my last minute gift giving guide.

1. Baked Goods are always a great gift. Personalization is key when it comes to this gift. You want to be sure you aren’t baking with any ingredients that the recipient is allergic to. If you are not sure, use a wide array of ingredients to give your recipient options, and include a “map” of what baked good contains which ingredients. They will be so grateful for your thoughtfulness, they won’t even care if there is a portion of their gift that they cannot consume.
2. A gift card is a tried and true gift, but if you’re like me and want to jazz it up a bit, include a heartfelt note with it. Explain that they are so great, that you couldn’t possibly come up with a gift good enough for them. Write about how much you value them, include a special memory, and express your wish to spend many more holidays with them. Honestly in this situation, the gift card is just an added bonus, the kind note is what will make their whole day.
3. Subscription boxes exist for absolutely everyone’s interests. They make subscription boxes for makeup lovers, dog lovers, avid readers, movie buffs, mystery enthusiasts, foodies, you name it. The beauty of this gift is that you aren’t responsible for giving the gift on time, they are delivered monthly to your recipient’s door. Genius!
4. Concert or movie tickets are always appreciated. Coming from a broke twenty-one year old, there are so many shows I would love to see, but can’t justify financially. Gifts should be something your loved one wouldn’t necessarily get themselves.
5. Dinner is an extremely underrated gift. After a long, stressful day, there is nothing better than your loved one taking you out for dinner. It is a great way to spend quality time with them and show your loved one how much you appreciate them. Plus, a lot of people remember events more than items, so this will be a lovely, memorable gift.

 

I hope this helps you guys come up with wonderful gift ideas for your even more wonderful loved ones.

Stay tuned for more blog posts about the holidays, some of my creations, and topics I find to be absolutely fascinating.

As always, thank you so much for reading, and I hope you have the happiest of holidays.