Makeup Magic

This article explains how to use contouring and highlighting so your makeup will better accentuate the features of your face.  It shouldn't add any time to your routine, it simply retrains you on the proper places to apply.  Stay glamourous!

Makeup Tutorial: How to Contour Your Face

Fear - Why To Let It Go

The following quote is a powerful message delivered by this short video about fear.  After hearing it and reflecting on its meaning, I have decided to let go of my fears.  Instead, I want to view challenges as exciting adventures to embrace, love, and pursue rather than as scary obstacles to run from.  I will encourage myself to push the walls of my safety box until they break and fall down.  In this moment, I can no longer hide from my fears, but they must simply be faced and overcome. 

“Fear is just imaginary. Fear is just anticipated failure in your mind of the event that hasn’t even occurred yet.  Fear isn’t real.  Fear isn’t a thing.  Fear isn’t a person.  Fear isn’t an object.  Fear is all you.  It’s in your mind, and it’s self-created.  Instead of thinking about the 70 years, 28,000 days on this planet as something scarce, limited, as something that’s running out of time­­ – instead of thinking about it that way, think of it as a gift.  Think of it as an opportunity for you to do what you have to do on this planet.  And let this massive, infinite galaxy and universe – let that awestruck you.  Let that inspire you to do things differently if possibly.  So I leave you with a question.  I leave with you a challenge on this beautiful autumn fall day.  And that’s to create your own environment instead of being a product of it and that starts from you understanding how irrelevant fear is.  Because once you understand how irrelevant fear is, your capacity is limitless.  You will understand that you are the one in control of your life, you are the one that creates your environment and that you are the one that uses this system, this resource, as a tool and not to be a tool in this system.  Because in the end, it’s all about pooling our natural talents together and creating massive value for this world and leaving your legacy on this planet.  How’s that for perspective.”

QUICK TIPS

The link to the blog post below will take you to an insightful list of tips to help guide your decisions and feelings while you are in your 20's.  Even if none of this is new to you, it is always great to refresh your mind with words of advice.  Think about copying and pasting it into a document and adding or removing anything you want.  Then, print and hang it in your closet to remind you of these important lessons each time you start and end your day.  Or, simply store it somewhere that you can access anytime you need a boost of inspiration.

70 Things I Learned in My 20's

A Little Girl's Daddy

As little girls, Daddy is the figure we look to love.  We watch him love Mommy, and we dream of having a man just like him.  The traits that Daddy possesses are the ones girls look for when we start looking for our own man to love.

Unfortunately, not all girls are lucky enough to have a father who openly loves.  Some men marry women for their money, thinking her parents will support the family and he will not have to work to provide.  Some men cheat on their wives, thinking that she is enjoying herself on vacation with the kids and won't notice the lingerie his prostitute left in his wife's armoire.  Some men also have perverted and violent tendencies.  These can be taken out on both wives and children.

When a girl has a dad who possesses traits like the ones described above, these are what she instinctually looks for in a mate.  These are men that hurt her, however, and leave her feeling as wounded as her mother felt by the soulless treatment of her father.

As a girl with a poor father, I have found that it is important to recognize this fact and make a point to seek a man who possesses traits that my father does not, as unnatural as that may feel at first.  I never want to suffer the abandonment, fear, or hopelessness that women who marry devilish men experience.  Most importantly, however, I will do everything in my power to ensure that my children have parents who serve as role models.

Nobody can fake being a father.  Therefore, a man who lacks the character of a true gentleman does not deserve the privilege of having a little girl in his life, even if he has already created her.

Musical Inspiration

Daft Punk is a classic electronic band.  The robotic duo's latest album is called Random Access Memories, a reference to the storage capacity or "RAM" on a computer.  I love the videos that feature the people who collaborated with Daft Punk on this album.  You can watch the videos by going to their website randomaccessmemories.com and clicking on the link in the upper right corner that says "Watch: The Collaborators Series."  There are eight clips to watch, but the one below is my favorite.  Enjoy!

A Brief History of Me

As a fifteen year-old girl finishing my freshman year of high school at a public school in Littleton, Colorado, I entered the summer of 2007 with excitement.  I was, as usual, traveling to my house on Lake George in upstate New York to spend two months playing on the water with the family and friends who I have known and loved since before I can remember memories.  My dad would visit for two weeks (one at the beginning and one at the end), and I couldn’t be more excited.  I could feel that something was going to be great about this summer, and I was right.  I had the most fun I had ever had with my friends, but I also noticed a change in the relationship of my parents.  I assumed things would go back to normal when we returned home to Colorado.   But weird things continued to happen.  After a couple weeks of being home, my parents broke the news to my brothers and I that they were getting a divorce.  I will never forget this day, for it is a day that changed me forever.  About a month later, I was touring private schools in New Jersey and staying at the house of the man who will be marrying my mother this coming fall, six years later.  Basically, my last year in Colorado was a blur of partying, playing lacrosse, and making memories with my friends (most of who were going off to college).  I lived two years in New Jersey and pretty much hated every minute of it.  I hardly saw my dad, who stayed in Colorado, and I felt extremely lonely. 

When I flew down to Texas to start my freshman year at SMU, I was even more excited than when I went to Lake George three summers before.  I knew I was going to meet incredible people, have amazing experiences, and learn so much about the world.  What I didn’t expect, however, was how much I was about to learn about myself.  I always knew I was a good student, but being surrounded by friends who just wanted to pass their classes made me question why I cared so much about grades.  I kept up a 4.0 for two semesters, but there were so many other things I could be doing, like hanging out with my friends, trying new restaurants, and going on long walks around the beautiful sidewalks of Highland Park.  I got involved in clubs, sports, and Greek life; and I was happier than I had been since I had left Colorado.  I even got to see my dad a couple of times that year. 

One weekend when most of my friends were out of town, I was sitting on my futon with a friend of mine who is very religious.  Casey was the one in my group of friends who partied without drinking and who could always be counted on to put together the stories that none of us remembered in the mornings after going out.  Although I had gone to church every Sunday in elementary school, my family began skiing on Sundays when club lacrosse games started taking place on Saturdays in middle school.  After my family got out of the habit of going to church regularly, we even stopped going on holidays like Christmas and Easter.  During my time in school in New Jersey, I noticed my interest in spiritual things when I had a Buddhist minister as one of my teachers.  We often mediated during class, and I read a lot of books about enlightenment.  The universe always fascinated me; and on this weekend when I was alone with Casey, I began to ask him questions about Jesus.  He answered them all as best as he could, and he even encouraged me to go to church with him.  I went a couple of times, and something strange happened.  I would uncontrollably cry as soon as the pastor began speaking.  Opening my dialogue with God again was another turning point in my life that has changed me forever.

My sophomore year at SMU was the time in my life that I hit rock bottom.  I was no longer seeing or speaking to my father, I had my heart broken by a boy I thought I had loved, and my friends seemed to stop caring about hanging out with me (probably because I was so depressing to be around at this point).  I decided I needed to make a change, and I did.  First, I started a blog.  To this day, it is a place where I can express myself.  It felt good to put my feelings out there even though it is likely that nobody ever came across it.  I went through about a year of extreme sadness during which I would just cry.  I didn’t know what was hurting me, and I was so far from my family that they didn’t notice I was struggling.  Luckily, a couple of good friends listened to me and helped me determine the root of my pain: my dad.  I didn’t understand why we had completely lost touch and how a parent could show so little care for a child.  I had been coping with this loss by creating a hard exterior around my heart.  While I did this as a defense mechanism to hold onto the love that my father had given me in the past, it hurt me even more because it kept new love from going in.  Breaking down this wall and becoming vulnerable was a long process, but I knew that I still had a strong anchor to my other family and friends.

Letting go of my dad as a person who I loved was the hardest thing I have ever done, and I still find the whole situation very sad.  But I have gained strength in learning how to live my life without allowing others to control my feelings.  I have also developed an understanding about myself to a degree that I never thought I could.  One thing that helped me through this time was rediscovering my faith in God.  I don’t go to church often, but I pray and write to Him any time I feel unsure, weak, or sad.  I also read the Bible for answers in times of desperation, and I thank God for everything as often as I can.  God is what I love most because He is the foundation on which I have rebuilt my life. 

My dream since my first trip to New York City when I was ten has been to live and work in the city that never sleeps.  I plan to move there as soon as I graduate and pursue a career in real estate.  Somewhere along the way, I hope I meet and marry the man of my dreams.  I also want to have a family of my own and travel all over the world.  My greatest moments of joy are experiences with my friends and family.  The feeling of bonding with these people over games, laughter, and stories is more fulfilling than anything else in the world.  I am equally fascinated by experiences with nature, such as watching shooting stars dart across the sky or seeing the colors that a sunrise creates on the lake.  These phenomena fascinate me because of their beauty that God created.  I always try to be aware and grateful for nature as much as I am for my loved ones. 

The main things I value in life are honesty, loyalty, and love.  I believe that being honest about who you are and are not is important in relationships, for I care about people enough to let them know who I genuinely am and I appreciate when they reciprocate by showing me their true selves.  Loyalty is essential in being honest and ensuring that you do not hurt people who you care about and who care for you.  Lastly, I believe that life begins with love, and the purpose of life is to love and feel loved.  It is the basis of all desires and great memories, and it is what will keep us happy and alive as a race.  In fact, I believe that everything in “life” is an allusion of what we choose to think, see, hear, smell, touch, and feel both physically and emotionally.  Therefore, after my body dies, I believe my soul will enter a heavenly realm where all good souls go to enjoy each other for eternity without the fears, struggles, and insecurities of the physical realm.  I am not a perfect person and I never want to be.  I only want to be of service to those I can help, always be exploring ways to improve life, and never stop loving those for whom I care the most.

Lost Things -Lang Leav

Lake House

It is one of those perfect August days—sunny and warm with a light layer of clouds to keep the heat from being too hot on the skin.  I woke up late; and currently, I am at my house on the southern point of Forest Bay.  I am sitting on a deck with Lake George at three and nine o'clock, and the houses I have lived in every summer for my whole life to my front and back.  When I look around, I can't help but see memories, people, and interactions that I have encountered in this area of the world over my years.  I even see the people whose faces I know from photographs of them sitting in these chairs.  They were on this porch, holding cocktails, when the love and laughter was created.  Chit-chat and gossip with cousins and neighbors, all about each other—I love that I am a part of this, and I know that we will have this place to return to each other for all the rest of our days.

To be twenty-one, a Senior in college, and almost living on my own, the experiences with my best friends and family take place less often.  We used to see each other every day from the moments we woke up until as late as we could pass out.  Whether it was curfews reeling us in at twelve in the evening or the booze knocking us out just after the sun rose, I have seen and lived the most beautiful things in life at this place.  I am grateful for the ever present rumble of a speedboat in the distance, laughter from children across the bay, and waves splashing against the rocks.  These are the sensory experiences that let me know that I am safe, at home.

This is a place I know; it is a place I love.

Must Hear

My favorite song at the moment is called "Sound Of The Drums" by Armin van Buuren (the #1 DJ in the world) and features Laura Jansen singing these beautiful lyrics:

Take a moment to hear this magical music:
   

Time to Think

I have spent the last week up in the mountains of Taos, New Mexico, learning about the history and culture while living a much more rural life than I am accustomed to.  While the air is pure and dry, living in a place without paved roads means there is dirt all around me.  My body has also felt fried from being in the dry heat of the days.  In my effort to find a balance in my altered lifestyle here, my sleep and water intake have increased significantly in order to support the exhaustion of my body.  This combination has had an impact on my mind, for I have never felt so clear headed and free in my thoughts.  My dreams have even been making sense out of issues that have been bothersome in my life for a long time.  Because there is very little to do here and very few people who I desire to get to know, I have really let go of thinking about what to do next.  Rather, my thoughts flow around and I act when one feels right.

Letting myself just be in this place is refreshing.  At the same time, however, there are moments when I have the urge to breakthrough an idea and create something to fill a piece of me that I feel is still missing.  With one more week to spend in Taos, I will make a conscious effort to pay attention to my thoughts and look for a common thread that continually weaves its way through my mind.  I want to actively pursue my passion in this lifetime, but first, I must have a clear vision and purpose for what I want to spend my time in this world doing.

                                                      {~ listen to your heart ~}                                                      

Get Lost & Be Found

Dance Music in America : Kaskade

For the last year, I have become excitedly passionate about a hobby: Electronic Dance Music.  I especially love to watch DJs play live.  From Electric Daisy Carnival in New York City to Lights All Night for New Years in Dallas and even Ultra Music Festival in downtown Miami this past March, I feel extremely blessed to have witnessed the talent of the people who created the world of Dance Music.

Earlier this week, Kaskade put on a show that was like nothing I had ever experienced in the Dance Music culture.  The setting was a dark club with just a light-up dance floor that felt like a warehouse pulsing with bass.

In his blog, Kaskade explains the change in approach he takes for his #redux tour: playing in a very intimate venue with few lights to distract the audience from the man behind the booth.  This is much different than many of the sets he plays, which include large clubs and stadiums with big stages and advanced lighting.  It is interesting to compare his styles in each type of venue.  Below are three videos of the times I have seen Kaskade.  I first saw him at a fairly large club in Dallas, Texas during the summer of 2012; next, I saw Kaskade play Saturday night on the Main Stage during the first weekend of Ultra 2013; and most recently, I was lucky enough to attend the first stop on Kaskade's #redux tour.  I am thankful that Kaskade mixes it up and makes each experience one to remember.

Words To Live By

Choose your words wisely, because it's all about peace, love, unity, and respect #PLUR

Read this definition from UrbanDictionary to find out the history of the word plur:

Happy New Year!

I hope this will remind, inspire, and give hope to you all.  Have a very happy new year full of peace, love, and happiness.

xoxo