Regarding posts in October, TNTH is going on a little hiatus for the month. Writing two posts a week is going to be a little bit intense in the next month due to school. I won’t be completely gone; every now and then I’ll randomly write a post for the blog, but it wouldn’t be on schedule. It will literally be a random post I publish that was written like 3 hours before only because I needed to write whatever was on my mind.
The last scheduled post that will be going up on TNTH is publishing this Saturday, October 7th.
Until then, thank you for supporting TNTH and understanding how crazy life can get through school semesters. One more semester, Liz… ONE MORE SEMESTER.
Have a great Spooktober, and I’ll see you on the next post!
I am writing this just hours after Demi Lovato dropped her sixth-studio album, Tell Me You Love Me. Back then, when she first released her first single off of the album, I can say that nobody was in store for the gems that she was hiding for the actual album. Personally, for me, I was excited to hear what was coming when she released the album-titled track, “Tell Me You Love Me”. It was such a different atmosphere than “Sorry Not Sorry”, and it definitely showcased her voice under a genre that her voice was made for. Lyrically, it hit home for me. It’s simply “all of my friends they know that it’s true; I don’t know who I am without you, I got it bad, baby” and BAM! She has everyone who feels that way in their bags. Over the weeks leading up to the release, she teased a couple of her songs from the album, but I seriously wasn’t ready for it to be as Grammy-worthy that it is. Here are some of my favorites from the albums! (Warning: It’s pretty much the entire album.)
You can hear these tracks on Spotify, which is where I’ll be linking the tracks.
This is the official 100th post of TNTH! It hasn’t even been a year since TNTH first launched; it’s crazy how time (and posts) flies.
Without making this too cheesy, I just wanted to thank everyone who stops by to read anything that’s posted on this blog. You’re not obligated to do so, but I guess there’s something on this little blog site that you wanted to read, and I thank you for even taking an interest in it. I’ve learned a lot about myself in these 100 posts. Like anything in life, you have your ups and downs, and I know that TNTH has seen some days being on hiatus or there were posts that were just written just to fit the schedule. Whatever the case was, I always come back to TNTH. TNTH has opened a new world of writing for me that I want to pursue in the future; it showed me what kind of writing I wanted to do and how to do it.
In celebration of 100 posts on TNTH, here are some posts that I had fun writing and posting on TNTH:
I just wanted to wish Happy Birthday to some important people in my life; it just so happens that their birthdays all fall in like a three-day time span.
Anyway, Happy Birthday to my closest college friend, Tori! (She’s the other bitch in the picture and by bitch I mean dog.) Her birthday was on Thursday, and even though she’s considered a Virgo-Libra cusp (cusp meaning the day of the month where some horoscopes consider that day to be the prior zodiac sign, or the next one), she’s definitely a Virgo. Besides being an English Teacher in Pennsylvania, her true talents shine through in art. Tori showcases her art on her Instagram, as well as her YouTube page currently under construction under the same name, StrangeBird Illustration. I hope you guys show her some love on her platforms and tell her Liz sent you! 😉
Happy Birthday to my older sister, Megan! Her birthday is actually tomorrow, so here’s an early birthday post! Being a younger sister, my older sister didn’t like me a lot when we were younger. We have some pretty crazy stories about our childhood we always talk about like how she threw a full soda bottle at me while I was using the bathroom, but I guess I grew on her as the years passed. Megan is my best friend; she knows everything that goes on with me whether it’s good or bad, and I’ve come to really value her as we grow older. Being each other’s only sibling, we definitely look out for each other and speak about any issues that affect us both. It’s personally been a rough year for the both of us, but whenever we get together it’s just non-stop jokes and laughter. I love you Meg, have a great birthday!
Happy Birthday to my mother! My mother’s birthday is also tomorrow, so it’s pretty cool that both my sister and mother share the same birthday. You don’t hear that happening often! I mean, what can I say about this woman? She’s taught me almost everything I know and follow as a woman myself. She’s confident, outspoken, and strong, and I strive to be everything that she is because even if things are going on with her personally, she continues to be the unbelievable funny person she is. Thank you for being an amazing mother to me and Megan; continue being the 29-year-old woman you will forever be! ❤
Happy Birthday to all the September babies out there! Go and flaunt your birthday selves! Here’s my gift to you all:
I wanted to come on the blog to inform you about Hurricane Maria and how you can help those who are and have been affected by the storm, particularly those in Puerto Rico.
Puerto Rico, although a hotspot for vacationers, financially aren’t capable to repair the damage Hurricane Maria caused. As a Category 4 hurricane, Maria is the first hurricane to directly hit the island in 100 years. The island, as a whole, does not have power, which means simple survival tasks like eating and drinking clean water are slim. Because of the financial issue Puerto Rico has, there’s a possibility that the island will not have power for 6 months. It’s scary and life-altering, especially those who don’t have anywhere to go in the time of reconstruction of the island.
Most of my Puerto Rican family live on the island and have lived to see both Hurricane Irma and Maria hit them full force in a time span of two weeks. It’s absolutely heartbreaking to see and hear that the beautiful island it once was is now completely destroyed.
As Americans, we need to acknowledge that Puerto Ricans are also Americans. Please do not ignore them just because it’s not one of the 50 states. Treat this tragedy as you did when Hurricane Harvey hit Texas and when Hurricane Irma hit Florida. Puerto Rico needs the most help they need, and it’s only right to help give back and spread awareness about this.
If you or anyone you know has family or friends who live in Puerto Rico, share this post. Below are a couple of phone numbers to call if you are trying to check on anyone who is in Puerto Rico, as well as a Refinery 29 article of all the organizations and donation pages to help the Caribbean Islands get through this hard time. Below is just the couple of donors that help Puerto Rico specifically:
Puerto Rico Check-In Phone Numbers:
202-778-0710
787-777-0940
877-976-2400
Organizations & Donation Pages for Help/Hurricane Relief in Puerto Rico*:
The local nonprofit ConPRmetidos is raising money for relief to communities in Puerto Rico impacted by the hurricane.
The first lady of Puerto Rico Beatriz Rosselló and a group of companies created Unidos por Puerto Rico to help the victims of the storm.
The Hispanic Federation is raising funds to help with emergency relief in Puerto Rico.
The Puerto Rican women’s health organization Taller Salud has created a relief fund for families on the island.
*These listed above all come from the Refinery 29 article; there are more options to donate and help the other islands affected by Hurricane Maria and the ones listed above are just a few of the many pages you can visit to help and donate.
In times of need, we all need to come together. Simple as that.
September is known to be Suicide Prevention Month and before we go into October, forgetting about this issue due to Halloween and Fall leaves, I wanted to talk about this because this is something close to my heart. This is something that I will always fight for because even in 2017, we still live in a world where we associate suicide with weakness and selfishness. We still believe that suicide is something people want to do.
The first thing to realize about suicide is that people attempt and commit to it not because they want to end their lives. They commit suicide because they want to end the pain.
Take it from a girl who’s been on both sides of the story.
With the school year now in full force, it’s common to meet new people and classmates in your classes. From experience, I realize that after asking someone new what their name is, the second question that follows is usually “what’s your major?”
It’s amazing just how quickly their expression changes when you tell them you’re pursuing a degree in performing/creative arts. It’s like you can feel the judgment through their eyes, and it’s such an uncomfortable feeling.
It’s sad that we live in a world (or a city like NYC) that as young adults, we have to choose our paths according to how practical it is and how much money we will be making in the future. The purpose of higher education is to develop people as intellectuals in order to make it in the real world. With that being said, a lot of people gear towards majors that are very financially promising: business, pre-med, biology, psychology, social work, education, nursing, etc. Those who tend to pursue a degree in anything that’s creative are usually frowned upon on. In most cases, most people view those majors as those that people who are not “that smart” pick because “it’s easier”. It’s not dealing with logic and math and science and every other major that umbrellas under that division.
I am an English major. Even more so, I’ve been an English Major for the last 6 academic years. On the outside, it looks practical. It’s broad enough so that most people assume you’re pursuing English for a practical career. In the six years I’ve been around other English majors, I’ve noticed many of them pursue English to teach public school and eventually on the college level. It’s a common goal for pursuing a degree in a subject; I bet other subject-related majors have students who want to teach with their degrees.
Me, on the other hand, don’t want to teach English. I didn’t get my bachelor’s in English to teach and I’m not pursuing my Master’s in English to teach. I do not want to teach.
Before I start off this post, I would like to state a disclaimer that I am writing this at one in the morning on the week that I am highly emotional, so if this appears too sappy or cheesy for your liking, then I advise not to read this post.
I am a cheeseball when it comes to love. Reader’s discretion is advised.
Anyway, I am not a stranger when it comes to love. All my life, I loved a lot of people platonically and objects have sentimental value to me, and yes, I’ve mistaken my infatuation with love plenty of times in my life.
This time though is truly something to write in the books.
Sixteen years ago on this day, America was completely altered forever. The Twin Towers, notoriously known as the tallest buildings in New York City, collapsed due to two separate plane crashings in the early rush hours of the morning. It’s crazy to believe that I was alive during a period that will most likely be written and talked about in most history classrooms in schools. Most kids start remembering things when they’re four years old. That would mean the youngest group of people who could possibly remember 9/11 are people who were born in 1997. Those same people are now juniors in college. It’s crazy to think that sophomores in high-school weren’t even born. Most kids these days will look at today as “just another day”, just how most of us just think that days like the Pearl Harbor attacking is “just another day.” It’s such a different feeling knowing that I lived during a catastrophic time. I can tell you guys what happened to me hour-by-hour on September 11th, 2001. I can tell you how everyone was scared out of their minds whenever an airplane flew over a building in the sky. I remember my mother took my sister and I to our favorite boutique, and she bought us each a Beanie Babies Teen plush just so that we weren’t worried about what was happening. I remember crying to my mother, not wanting to o to school for two weeks because I was afraid “the bad people will come back for us.” I was only in the 2nd grade when this happened.
As I got older, I began to meet more and more people in my life, and with that came some stories of their own about 9/11. I know people who lost loved ones that day. I know people who were around the area on that day. I know a lot of people who were truly affected by it. Sixteen years later, we all remember the people who tragically lost their lives, and never forget the first responders who were also affected (even some of them are still dealing with 9/11-related illnesses) due to the events of this day.
As the years go by and this event begins to literally become history to the next generation, I don’t think I’ll ever go through this day with a grain of salt. I think I’ll always see myself as this 7-year old girl who was terrified, even if I couldn’t fully understand what was happening at the time. I think that’s what makes me sad the most.
Despite this, I hope everyone has a good and safe day today. 🇺🇸
As the summer came to an end for most of us college students, some of you guys are actually starting a new chapter in your lives; one of them may actually be grad school!
Before I say anything else, let me congratulate those who are deciding to jump back into school just months after finishing it. It’s not an easy decision to make when finishing four (or more) intense years of college and then shortly after start grad school.
Last year, I was starting grad school without any type of warning label or disclaimer about what to expect. I am the first of my friends and family to attend graduate school, so there wasn’t anyone telling me what to expect. Maybe some of you guys are in the same boat like I was; you start your grad classes in a couple of days and you’re stressed out because you expect it to be this horrible place of hard work, long novels, and novel-length pages.
Take a deep breath. Let me give you a little bit of a breather before you start regretting your grad school decision.
Letters From Liz. 