This Wednesday the boys flag football and girls volleyball team all went to Food Share together in Oxnard to distribute food to those in need. While some students may dread it, I tend to find peace in it. I sort of like talking to and meeting new people, I don’t want to be friends with everyone, I just want to be nice to everyone. And the experiences I’ve got in Food Share have really opened my eyes.
A simple “Have a nice day!” Does so much for some of those strangers in their cars, it really cheers me up. It also does make me realized how spoiled I am and how grateful I should be.
Seeing those tiny kids helping their parents just makes me want to spend more time with mine. I think I’m a great kid but you know that feeling, you just feel like you have done so many wrong things and just want to be nice.
That’s how I want people to see me, as a nice kid.
All in all I do enjoy Food Share, it brings experience and joy like no other.
The other day, as I was scrolling on TikTok, I came across a girl’s page, and I watched her pinned videos. I instantly got blasted back to last year when I was doing the exact same thing, and her words changed my mindset. Last year was not the best for me mentally. I had a lot of stuff going on in my personal life, and it was interfering with my relationships and academics. I would drown myself in my school work so I wouldn’t have to think about my life. One of my ways of distracting myself would be to spend hours upon hours on TikTok. It was one of these hours that I saw that girl’s video.
The gist of it was to be your own coach. She said to imagine that you are a coach, that is your whole purpose in life, and the only reason you are put on Earth. As a coach, you are stuck with one human from their birth until their death. You get to put thoughts in their head, make them do stuff, etc. As a coach, you don’t want to insult your human and make them feel bad; you want them to fulfill their life the best way they want. You are the coach to yourself.
This completely changed the way I talked to myself. I was so used to comparing myself to others who I thought accomplished so much more than I did, I forgot my purpose in life. I went from putting tons of pressure on myself to letting myself relax. It took some time for this adjustment to be fully implemented in my life, but when it did, I was doing so much better. Why would I be mean to myself? It is my first time on Earth, just like everyone else. When times get rough, I try to be the best coach I can be. The TikToker might’ve thought her video was just some dumb TikTok, but it genuinely helped me get out of a hard time in my life. I am so thankful for her.
From the moment I wake up to the time I sleep, I spend every moment active. That may be because I procrastinate and hold off until the last minute on a lot of things.
My day is kick-started at 7:30 when I spring out of bed to throw a hoodie on and make it to breakfast, and check in by 7:35. After that, the majority of the school day is spent working hard in class and focusing on doing the best I can.
The few breaks are still spent actively as I socialize with my friends all throughout the day. After school is sports. After sports is the gym, then I shower and go to dinner. After dinner is the study hall, and finally, after all of the rush, it is 8:59. My mind goes blank and fuzzy during study hall as I wait one last minute to enjoy the finale of my day.
Once it is 9:00, I am free from all the responsibilities of the day. I blast the best music with my roommate and make TikToks just for fun. I lie down and put on a show and absorb it effortlessly. I take too much joy in my free nights and end up staying out late. I never realize the consequence until it’s 7:30 and my body is numb as I jog to make breakfast.
So we all know what van life is and I’m pretty sure you can guess what bus life is. I’ve wanted to live in a van for a long time and wanted to convert one with my own hands and make it exactly how I want it, but recently I’ve been having doubts about whether I should live in a van because vans don’t have a lot of space so I couldn’t put a lot in there. However, a bus has quite a lot of space to put all the things I want there which is a lot. For example, there is almost no way I’m going to be able to fit a moped in a van like it’s not gonna happen. Also, I need a lot of power for everything and the best way I can get that is through solar and I could fit a lot more solar panels on a bus than a van. The bus is not perfect though it takes a lot of gas and I can’t get into certain places as easy compared to the van which is a big issue since I want to go to a lot of places that would need go like if I ever wanted to park in a normal parking lot i would need to take up about 5 spaces but in a van i could just do one. I might try and meet in the middle and do a box truck because that can get to most places but still has a good amount of space. I guess I don’t have to think about this to much right now but there’s a lot to think of so maybe I should start planning now.
The Halloween experience acts as a measurement of growth as it changes after every birthday. I watch each Halloween become less and less magical as my costumes have faded to my everyday clothes. Halloween is, as they say, “what you make it,” because unlike holidays like Christmas where there is no escaping the holiday spirit, Halloween is the easiest time to take a knee.
Spending time with friends and family passing out candy or trick or treating this year has been discouraged due to COVID. I’m not too disappointed, as I haven’t done much in recent years either, though I celebrated with a glass of apple cider and a little pumpkin to keep up the spirit.
I look forward to the day when I can spend the evening with my friends again, and maybe put together a costume with some magically newfound makeup skills. For now, however, I am content with this year’s Halloween because I know that there are many more to come.
Released in 2019, Demon Slayer has been the anime of the year. After enjoying the 26 episodes of season 1, I must say that it’s very good. I have devoured all of season 1 in a matter of 3 days.
A 2-hour long movie has been scheduled for Demon Slayer, which will be released in 2020.
I’ve watched many animes. The ones on top of my head right now are: JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, My Hero Academia, Attack on Titan, TheDisastrousLifeofSaikiK., One Punch Man, Mob Psycho 100, Black Butler, Fairy Tail, Devilman Crybaby, No Game No Life, Love, Chunibyo & Other Delusions… Even the old ones like Lupin the 3rd, or Dragon Ball Z.
I always find joy in watching animes, and I will keep watching animes in the future.
As a critic, watching all these animes, not all of them satisfy me. However, Demon Slayer is a masterpiece, even in my eyes. The anime contains human nature and emotions on a whole other level compared to some animes, I would say it’s one of the best and truest. I’m excited for the future of the Demon Slayer series.
I have a family friend who is staying with me over the holidays and she has a young son who still believes in Santa. He was scared I didn’t believe in Santa, so my mom told him that I still believed in Santa. He said that if I didn’t write a list I wouldn’t get any presents from him, so I had to write out a list and send it to my mom so he could see it. It was fun to write, so I thought I would share it:
Dear Santa,
This year for Christmas I want a dirt bike, tall boots, more riding gear, new earrings, clothes from American Eagle, a car wash, buckeyes, new tires, new rims, stuff for my car, a Kat Von D contour palate, a snowboard, plane tickets to Tennessee, squared toe boots, clutch/gas socks, anything car related, and CD’s for my car.
Maybe it hasn’t been my year, but it has definitely been my weekend, because, on Saturday, I got to see my favorite band for the fifth time.
This time was the first time I’ve ever been to Emo Nite Day. I wasn’t sure what I was expecting to happen, but the experience was way better than I ever could’ve imagined.
First of all, I never thought I’d be in a room full of hundreds of people jamming out to iconic emo songs, like I Write Sins Not Tragedies and Welcome to the Black Parade. The crowd during those DJ sets was just as exciting and wild as when the bands came on. It was an incredible feeling to scream all the lyrics with people who were screaming along with me and weren’t judging if my voice was horrible or not (sorry to the people near me because my voice was, in fact, horrible and really, really loud).
Saturday was the first time I ever got to see 30H!3 live. I only became a big fan recently, but their songs were still a big part of my childhood and I went crazy when they went on stage.
Then, I saw Mayday Parade. The last time I saw them was in seventh grade, but my friend and I continuously joked about how they never came to So-Cal. The times they did decide to come on their tours were weekdays or vacations when we were both out of town. Mayday Parade was one of my favorite bands during middle school, but I lost hope of seeing them live again.
But, I screamed when I heard they would be playing at Emo Nite Day alongside All Time Low and my middle school dreams were coming true. I was finally seeing Mayday Parade again and I got to hear Jersey, my favorite song by them, for a second time.
At the end of the night, after standing for six hours for the moment I’ve been waiting for since I bought tickets in August, All Time Low came on stage. The set was only an hour long, but they played all my favorite songs including Stella. Saturday night was the first time I ever heard that song live and I have the video to prove it, though my voice was louder than the singer’s voice in the microphone. Besides that, I finally checked off sitting on someone’s shoulders at a concert (Shoutout to my friend for keeping me on her shoulders for that long. Sorry I killed your neck, oops).
I know it’s biased because they’re my favorite band, but All Time Low performs the best concerts ever. During one of their songs, they released giant glow-in-the-dark beach balls into the crowd. There were always crowd surfers and people kept head-banging, singing, and jumping up and down during the choruses. Then, during Dear Maria, Count Me In, Luke from 5SOS came on stage and, while I’m not the biggest fan now, they were my favorite band alongside All Time Low in middle school. My former emo self was having the time of her life. They have the most unproblematic fan base, zero drama involving the band, and their concerts possess an energy that is always positive and happy.
I’m thankful for that night. For being able to head into LA for the night and let go of all the stress and drama of senior year and hold on to only good vibes from the evening. I know Emo Nite Day is only once a year, but I can’t wait to go again in the future.
Recently, one of the top meat producers in the U.S. invested in a new vegan meat producer, Beyond Meat.
But why?
It would seem that there is a new wave of vegetarianism, and I must say that I am in favor. It’s not only the thought of sweet, innocent animals that makes me happy to hear about this, but also my knowledge of the effects of the meat industry on the planet.
And aside from that, who can argue with more (delicious) options in the freezer aisle? I, personally, love food.
OVS Journalism Blog 
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