The Late-Late Blog

                I’m incredibly thankful this semester is over! Finally! It seriously took forever. I can’t wait to enjoy a nice long break.

                Honestly this was a wordy semester. As a journalism major, I’m writing papers like every hour. During break I can enjoy not having to do anything. I can enter my lazy mode.

                I wanted to say goodbye to this semester and reflect on the good and the bad about my magazine class. 

                There were very few bad things about this class, except, annoying photographers. I hate to sound like the bratty reporter, but it was ridiculous. Photographers don’t need to criticize a writer’s work. I don’t understand how critiquing every little sentence makes your photos better. That’s because it doesn’t! It just makes the photographer feel better.

                Having to coordinate my schedule with both of my photographers was annoying. I’m willing to work with them. However, they were not. I would offer to take time off from work or leave class early. But, once again it was all about what they wanted to do. Give me a break!

                Sad to say there were some incidences that lead to more assignments. I honestly didn’t mind having to keep a blog. I feel my writing has improved. I’m able to produce better ideas, type faster, and avoid writers block. Sadly, I have not improved on my self-editing. I’m horrible about it. My eyes see what they want to see, and not what’s written on the screen. Oh well, one day I can hope for improvement. The hardest part about the blogs is posting them on time. I’m forgetful. This blog is a late make-up blog, which I’m posting late. Kind of ironic, but better than submitting nothing.

                Another assignment that was added on due to numerous incidences was a book report. Personally, I do not like reading. It bores me like crazy. Maybe it’s because I haven’t read a book I actually enjoy. Or it could be because I like watching TV better. The book report was probably the only thing I didn’t enjoy about city mag.

                I really like magazine writing though. Everything is about features, not necessarily hard core news. There is a lot of planning into creating a magazine. I learned a lot about the work it takes to produce a magazine. Our class was defiantly more chillax which made things less stressful.

                I enjoyed my magazine class. It was one of the classes I actually looked forward to going to. I have met some really cool people and hope to see them in other journalism classes. I appreciate everything this class has taught me. I feel I has really strengthened my writing, and brought out my voice even more. My personal goal for nest semester is editing. I’m horrible at it! Let’s keep our fingers crossed that I have another great semester in spring.

                Goodbye city magazine. Thank you for all you’ve taught me! I enjoyed everything a have truly learned so much. Until next semester, adios! 

Thankful

                I have so many things to be thankful for this year. My life is pretty awesome. I’m so incredibly lucky life a life of true luxury.

                My family. They are everything to me. I’m so thankful and appreciative that they are always there for me. Without my family I would be lost. My family is everything to me, they always come first. I’m beyond thankful thank my grandfather is cancer free and the rest of my family is in good health. I’m thankful that my grandma is my best friend. She’s everything to me. She’s there at the best times and the worst times. I’m thankful that she always puts up with me.

                No words can even describe how thankful I am for my family. They support me with everything I do. I’m thankful they pay for my education and give me great advice. I’m thankful we all have dinner together and talk about our days. Most importantly I’m thankful for all of the little things we do for each other, like surprise dinners.

                I’m extremely thankful I have a roof over my head. I’m lucky to have a family who supports me in whatever I do. I’m extremely thankful I have a job. It’s financially hard being a student, and my job allows a little more financial stability.

                As shallow as it sounds, I’m thankful for all of my materialistic items. I’m thankful I can afford to buy the things I want, and appreciate the hard work it took to get them. They bring happiness to my life. I’m thankful I can live a life with no shopping regrets.

                I’m also thankful for my education. At times I want to quit, but school is really changing my life. My teachers inspire me to be a better person. They also open up my eyes and broaden my knowledge. Many people take advantage of school. At times it may be overwhelming and stressful, but I am thankful I live in a country where I can receive amazing education.

                I have to admit it, I am extremely thankful for junk food. Junk food, you taste amazing and make my life better. I’m thankful you help get me through the most stressful times. I’m super thankful for junk food!

                In addition, I’m thankful I have a car. Many people don’t have a car to get around. They have to take a bus, carpool, or borrow somebody’s car. I’m thankful I am not one of those people. My life is so much easier. I appreciate not having to worry about getting to/from work or school. I’m thankful my father could afford to get me one.

                The most recent thing I’m thankful for is reconnecting with my childhood best friend. Honestly, our friendship meant the world to me, and I’m thankful were back in touch. I don’t have very many friends, but the ones I do have, I am thankful for. They always this and support me. I’m thankful for everything all my friends do for me. It might go unsaid, but I really do appreciate everything they do for me.

Friends, Frenemies, and Fakes

                Unfortunately we all have them. Those friends we secretly hate. We force ourselves to be fake, pretend to be their best gal pal, and pretend were not dreaming of an exit strategy to escape the friendship. Why do we do this? Force ourselves to be frenemies, and for what? 

                The best example of frenemies is Serena Van Der Woodsen and Blair Waldorf from Gossip Girl. Instead of being each others rock, they sabotage each other. Maybe it’s because they are jealous of one another, or maybe it’s because Serena slept with Blair’s boyfriend, Nate. Whatever it maybe, they fake a friendship with each other because they can’t imagine life without the other one.

                There have been so many people I have been forced to be nice to in high school. Daily friend request from people I don’t know and faking a smile pretending like I care about them. What was it all for, popularity, the need to be accepted, or fear of being alone? It’s scary going through high school alone. That’s why I forced myself to be friends with fakes. 

                As girls we are envious of the strong bromances men form. It’s such a buzzkill to realize I will never have a strong friendship like that. Too many haters are in the world today. Girls hate on very little thing. That’s one reason I don’t have very many friends. They hate on every little thing I do and talk shit behind my back, I can’t stand it!

                I can’t say I’m innocent in this whole frenemy situation. I’ve talked bad about my friends behind their backs, started rumors and sabotaged relationships. Why? Because I used to be super jealous bitch. It’s way easier to be a bad friend than a good friend.

                I’ve attempted to suck all of the poison out of my life. Clear my life of my frenemies, stop myself from talking shit, and started looking for better friends. I’ve unfriend many fake friends from my social media sites and forced myself to stop tweeting. 

                Being a good friend is defiantly a chore. I’m currently on the path of repairing an old friendship. Me and my only true friend I’ve ever had grew apart, and went separate ways. Now I’m reconnecting trying to become friends again. It’s not easy. It’s been almost seven years since we were best friends. Our lives have changed so much, and trying to reconnect is not easy. I’m thankful for all of the great times we had and hope one day we could get back to that. 

                The truthiness of the matter is I’ve grown up. I’m learning to surround myself with better people. We should all really avoid talking bad about each other and just embrace those who are actually worth our time. I’ve learned not to let people take advantage of me, and realized who my true friends are. It sickens me to realize I was not a nice person. I was a horrible friend, when my gal pals needed me the most.

Confessions of a Starbucks Barista

“Lemme getta one Carmelo Frappe with extra extra caramel.”

This one order haunts any barista. 

First of all, why are you talking like that?

Second of all, why do you need all that caramel? Your teeth are going to rot. 

Third of all, that’s not even the name of the drink!

Whenever I go to work I try to have a positive outlook. My job is really cool and I have some great coworkers. However, my positive outlook always fails, when I get that one dumb customer.

You know, I get it, not all of us are coffee geniuses. But seriously, at least be nice to me when I’m trying to help you out. Thank God I don’t work in retail because I do not have the patience for it. 

Over the weekend Starbucks had a promotion for all holiday drinks. They were all, buy-one-get-one free! What a freeking nightmare! The line was out the door, with drink orders overflowing. It was pure madness. 

The thing that really killed me about this promotion is the company called it “Happy Hour.” Okay, it wasn’t even an hour, it was three hours, and there was nothing happy about it.

People think being a barista is so easy, and for the most part it is. But, when it comes to customers, they love to yell about every little thing. I mean, if you pay almost six dollars for a drink, of course you want your order to be correct. Not everything is my fault though, don’t yell at me! I’m the wrong person to get an attitude with, trust me. 

Let’s just say I’m glad that promotion is over. 

I’m a closing barista, so it’s my job to set everything up for the morning crew. It’s required that we majorly clean the bathrooms nightly. Talk about disgusting! I hate cleaning them. But, what really kills me is when I have a 'restroom closed' sign on the door, and customers ask if it’s open! Go slap yourself! Can you not read? 

The worst part about cleaning the bathroom is they always smell like poop. I’m a barista not a janitor Starbucks! I should not have to clean bathrooms. 

                In the midst all of the craziness that goes on, the phone is always ringing.

                “Hi thanks for calling Starbucks, this is Madi, how can I help you?”

                “Is this Starbucks?”

Oh my God! I want to hang up the phone when I hear this response. I’m like yeah no shit, I just said Starbucks asswipe. 

                The worst is when people call and hang up right away. I don’t have time for that.

                How could I almost forget the secret menu? They are made up drinks people post on the internet. If we do not have it on our menu, it’s not a real drink. If you know what goes inside of it, I’m more than happy to make it for you. However, it’s going to be pricy. Any addition you add to your drink is at least 60 cents. 

                Honestly, one of the best parts of my job is talking with regular customers. We have some regulars that are super cool. I love talking to them and seeing what’s going on in their life. The best part about regulars is they are super understanding if it’s busy, and appreciate your efforts. If it wasn’t for the regular customers, I would think all customers are mean and cynical.

                All in all, being a barista is cool. There are those people that ruin it completely. But I enjoy creating inspired moments in each customer’s day. Also hearing, “Thank you, it’s delicious, have a good day.” Is something every barista needs to hear. So next time you go into Starbucks, show your barista some love and respect.

Inspiration

                Only one person comes to my mind when I hear the word inspiration, and that is my grandma. She is everything I want to be and more.

                Marilyn Anne Salter is a woman who will put her own life on hold to protect her family. She had a rough childhood growing up in San Francisco. With an abusive drunk father, and a drunken gambling mother, my grandma didn't have it easy. Growing up she would always stand up for her siblings and unfortunately her father beat her for it. However, she believed nobody should ever abuse a child, so she fought back.

                My grandma worked hard to get out of her abusive situation at the age of 16. She graduated from high school and moved to downtown Los Angeles. She never looked back, her brothers and sisters moved out shortly after and were free from their horrible parents.

                Her favorite word has got to be the word, "NO!" She refuses to put up with bullshit. Even when she was robbed at knifepoint five years ago, she still screamed, "NO!" And guess what? The guy was so scared shitless, that a 68 year-old granny was fighting back, he ran off like a pussy.

                I was raised by my grandmother, and let me tell you, she had her hands full. She would do everything for me without even batting an eye. She finger-painted with me, taught me how to sew, and how to bake. I know I drove her crazy and still probably do, but she still loves me. Without hesitation she still takes care of me every single day.

                My grandpa’s ongoing battle with skin cancer has proved how strong my grandma is. She is staying strong for my whole family. When he underwent chemotherapy and radiation, she drove him every single day for treatments, and held his hand the entire time.

                She always says, “It is what it is, there’s nothing I can do except be there for him.” My grandma has turned into my grandpa’s personal nurse. Every day twice a day, she cleans and bandages my grandpa’s skin cancers. More important than that, she puts up with his bitching and complaining every day.

                And throughout everything, I’ve only seen my grandma cry once, and it’s been three years of cancer treatments for my grandpa. I’m scared to lose him, but she gives me faith. When I’m at my weakest, she whispers, “We’ll get through it together.”

                Even through all of the cancer treatments, my grandma managed to make our family feel normal. She stilled cooked dinner every night and did all of the shopping and cleaning.

                My grandma is the glue that holds my family together. We fight and argue sometimes, but in the end we just laugh at each other. She inspires me to be a strong woman who hold her family together even in the worst situations.

                My granny is more than my inspiration, she is my role model. Cutie, granny, and baby girl are just some of the nicknames I have for her. We laugh and joke all the time. When every something grosses her out she says, “That is Na as in Na, and Sty as in Sty.” Also known as nasty. She is full of fun and laughter and will drop anything for her family.

Pizza Face

                Pizza face, unfortunately it's something I've been called most of my life. All through middle and high school I was bullied because I didn't have clear skin. Of course I wanted clear skin, but it was not in my genes.

                I tried everything from Proactive, to the most expensive skin cream possible. And still no results were achieved. It was heart breaking to me, almost every boy I had a crush on referred to me as pizza face or crater skin. During your teens acne affects everyone, some more than others in my case. It was extremely painful to deal with emotionally and physically.

                My confidence was extremely low, no matter how much of a poker face I put on, I was devastated on the inside. I would look in the mirror and not even recognize myself.

                My mom spent so much of her time driving me to different dermatologists looking for relief. The search was not cheap, with a 40 dollar co-pay, it was extremely costly to find a relief.

                Finally, after visiting a dermatologist in Long Beach I was placed on a drug called Accutane. Many controversies surround the drug. Accutane, is likely to cause massive depression and in some rare cases, suicide. Accutane is also extremely dangerous if you become pregnant while taking it, deformities will occur in the child.

                I didn't care what the risks were, I wanted to have beautiful skin. The doctor told me the results would not be instant and that there would be side effects. Before I could go on the drug, I had to have blood tests and a basic physical. If I wasn't perfectly healthy, I couldn't take the magic skin pill.

                About two weeks later, I was cleared to start taking Accutane. However, Accutane is under extreme regulation by the government because of the large risks. Before I could pick up my prescription, I had to have more blood work done and take a pregnancy test. The process was pretty extreme for my age, I was only 15 at the time.

                I didn’t know obtaining clear skin would be such hell. The Accutane caused my skin to be flakey and dry. My lips were like a cactus because they were so dry. No matter how much lotion I applied, the Accutane kept drying my skin out. Any cold or warm breeze would bring tears to my eyes. My skin was so dry, any wind would irritate it more.

                Now, typically, most teens remain on Accutane for about 3 months. I had what my dermatologist referred to as “extremely stubborn acne.”  I remained on the drug for almost 10 months. Going to dances, cheer competitions, and school with dry flakey skin for 10 month was agony. My junior year of high school was hell because of it.

             Once I started looking past the dry irritation, I noticed something, my skin was clear! Enduring the misery was worth it! After I stopped taking Accutane, my skin was smooth and clear. I looked and felt like a model.

                The process was not easy or fun. Would I do it in again or recommended it? In a heartbeat! It’s an amazing feeling having beautiful skin. My confidence rose immensely, I couldn’t be happier with my results. My senior year of high school was like a dream come true. I didn’t have to layer my face with foundation for my skin to look beautiful.

                Do I still get breakouts? Here and there I do. But it feels amazing going from pizza face to crusty face, to clear beautiful skin. Anything is better than the horrible skin I had during my teens. Everybody gets acne and it is unfair to bully someone because of it. 

I have attatched a little before and after!

(Before)

 (After)

    The before is a little hard to see, but it's the only one I have with bad skin. I destroyed the rest of the terrible skin pictures. The after picture was taken almost a year later, as my senior yearbook picture. Both photos are not retouched or photoshopped. These are real results.

Why can't girls paint their damn toenails?!?!

It is beyond disgusting when I see unpainted toenails! How hard is it to go to the store and buy some 99 cent polish?

I want to throw up when I see these gross puppies!

Ladies, I beg you, please, please, please don't wear sandals or open toed shoes if your toes are busted. 

A major thing that irks my nerves, is when celebrities have unpolished toes. Really? You have so much money, how hard is to go get a pedicure?

Kate Moss you disgust me! You're a super model! This is unacceptable!

I understand not every girl is a girly girl. However, proper toenail care is a matter of personal hygiene. If you do not properly care for your feet, fungus can develop. 

Why is it that most women who don't paint their toenails always wear sandals? Put them away! I don't want to see your disgusting unpainted stubby toes. It makes me want to throw up. 

Even wearing a basic lacquer on your toes it better than nothing. I'm not asking for women to go and get detailed designs. I am, however, asking for some basic nude at minimum. 

Before slipping on your cute new sandals, take five minutes to paint your toes. It's really not hard at all. Consider it your good deed of the day. By painting your nails, you're avoiding society from seeing your disgusting feet.

The way I see it, there is absolutly no reason why toenails should be unpainted. I used to have this friend who would chew her toenail. It was the most  repuslive habit I've ever seen. Besides, the chewing, she never painted her toenails. Imagine small, stubby, unpainted toenails. The sight of this was enough for me to never hangout with her unless she was wearing shoes.

The nastiest detail about unpainted toenails, is the gross dirt wedged under each nail. Nobody wants to see your dirty ass toes. It just makes you look like a sloppy mess. If your toes are dirty, your hair, body, and face are probably dirty too.   

How could this not turn your stomach?

It looks like you didn't even bathe. Unacceptable! Among the first few things people notice about you, feet may not be one of them. However, the close you get to someone, it become a disgusting habit! Painting your damn toenails takes less than five minutes. If your going to wear sandals, I beg you please paint your toenails. 

While girls may have many nasty habits, unpainted toenails is one habit I will never excuse another girl for. I even went off on another one of my friends for not painting her toes. It is never okay to walk outside with your toenails bare. 

It doesn't matter if you're a girly girl or a tomboy, every girl should paint their toenails. It's not hard or time consuming. 

See how pretty they are?

Feet are not an attractive body part, but with a little bit of polish, they become manageable. So, ladies, the next time you think about wearing sandals with crusty unpainted toes. Think again! I beg you it's disgusting.