Surviving Family Vacations

This is my first international blog post! Well if you count the U.S. Virgin Islands as an international island...it is confusing. A U.S. citizen can travel in and out of the U.S. Virgin Islands without his or her passport, but the minimum drinking age is 18. Most cellular companies, for example AT&T and Sprint, don't charge roaming fees or anything that would normally be associated with international cell phone usage. However, the people of the U.S. Virgin Islands drive on the left side of the road. This is a complex island territory. And as complex as it may be logistically, it is a beautiful and wonderful place. I am staying in the island of St. John which is the smallest. The "main" island is St. Thomas, which you Real World fans will become jealous of me, is only a 40 minute ferry ride.

Ok so this post is not an advertisement for the Virgin Islands. The toughest thing about family vacations is that it basically is like being grounded at home, except you're in some exotic location. You may not even get the privacy of being locked up in your own room on family vacations.

The first couple of days, or even hours, of your vacation may be so much fun to you. But realize that it is all an illusion. You are just hypnotized by the idea of going on vacation. If your family has tension going through security checkpoint at the airport, don't expect to have the time of your life once you reach your actual destination.

I have gone on enough family vacations to finally be able to somewhat survive them. From the 7 hour road trip to the two week tour of Canada, I have survived my family and I am here to share my survival tips:

• Get noise-canceling headphones
• These are a God-send on airplane flights or car rides.
• Make your own seat assignment
• Sitting next to all of your family on a five hour flight is not always a good thing. You will be with your family for the rest of the vacation.
• Research the hotel or resort you are staying at
• Large resorts are perfect for "getting lost" from your parents. Smaller motels are just something to avoid. And check the hotel's internet policy.
• Convince your parents to invite other families
• Cousins or family friends that are your age can prevent potential homicides.
• Allocate some of the liquor for yourself from the group

For international vacations:

• Check whether your cell phone will work in that country or on that island
• Trust me. It will be a lifesaver.
• Figure out the local drinking age and their customs. 
• Self-explanatory.
• Learn key phrases in the local language
• Knowing how to ask for vodka dry martini instead of a gin dry martini can save you from having a miserable ferry ride.

Netflix During The Winter

So you are home for the holidays. Either you just finished finals and you are back home for winter break or...you're just home, whatever. For those of you are in college, coming home for breaks is a huge emotional roller coaster. You are excited to take a break from classes, see all your friends and family and just relax! But then again...you're back home living with your family. You are back in that rut you were stuck in during senior year of high school where you were interrogated every time the thought of you exiting the house was brought up--even if you were going to check the mail outside.
And even worse, if you go to school in a big city, or even any college town, and you come back to your podunk hometown, you will be dying of boredom before Christmas Eve. Even if you are able to leave the house, you cannot avoid running into those annoying kids from your past. Like the "popular" kid who obviously peaked in high school and now busses tables at the local wine bar. There goes the chance of you using your fake ID at happy hour. And it's fucking winter. If you live in a normal climate zone, it is too cold to even do anything. There is no question of partaking in any outdoor activities--for those of you who still do that?
Now what do you do? You are basically a prison within your household, any escape from the prison is met with extreme awkwardness and it is too cold and miserable outside. Crawl back into your bed, open your computer, and open yourself to Netflix. Unless you somehow found a job for the winter, you will have enough "prison" time to finish all eight seasons of Grey's Anatomy within the month.

Here are some suggestions of options among the mess of Netflix's "selection:

Television Shows:

• Grey's Anatomy (8 seasons)
• Mad Men (4 seasons)
• Weeds (7 seasons)
• The Office (8 seasons)
• Keeping Up With the Kardashians (4 seasons)
• Pretty Wild (1 season) *
• White Collar (3 seasons)
• LOST (6 seasons)
• Arrested Development (3 seasons)
• Workaholics (1 season)
• That's So 70's Show (8 seasons)
• How I Met Your Mother (7 seasons)

Movies:

• White Chicks
• Iron Man 1&2
• Thor
• Captain America
• Transformers Dark of the Moon
• Mean Girls
• Bad Boys 2
• King's Speech
• Crash
• Cruel Intentions

Finals Week

It's finals week out there for most of us in college--and if you're not having finals this week or not even in college, just go away for now. It is probably really typical for everyone to "brag" about their procrastination or how much of a studying-zombie they become during this week. But let's try to find some middle ground. 

Cramming in studying the night before each final will not get you that A or high grade you want. You may get lucky and it can happen, but not very likely. The best thing you can do, is to just study very effectively. Skimming through all your notes from the entire semester is completely useless. Try out a website like studyblue.com to make your studying more effective. And get your classmates on it too so you have a greater network/more study materials!

If you're that Comm major who just has to turn in one paper and give one speech in a class, leave campus for a majority of the week. No one wants you here. No wants to hear how bored you are or how much free time you have. You are literally, in the minds of everyone with a real finals schedule for this week, the scum of the earth. After that last day of finals, you can reappear on campus and do not mention anything about your lack of being a real student.

And for those normal people with an average stress load, try as hard as you can to keep it to yourself. You are not the only student with finals. Complaining to your roommate while he is trying to memorize Organic Chemistry mechanisms while you recite some random string of Excel formulas that you have to learn for your business final is NOT worth anyone's time. 

If you're looking for some de-stressing tips and blah blah, check out LesDivaDiaries post!

Holiday Shopping Guide

So the holidays are coming up/are in full-effect now, just in case you have been locked up in a cave for the past like two months. Here are some gift ideas for you to give out on Hanukkah/Christmas/Kwanzaa...?


For the wine enthusiast (closet alcoholic) you know


For that one person you know that still bikes:


For the hippie friend of yours who refuses to use bottled water:



For the bitch who doesn't have these yet:


For your senile relatives:

The X-Factor USA Season 2

I have been really getting into the X-Factor lately, mostly because I am so sick of the artists on the radio right now...*cough* Justin Beiber *cough*. Now you could be one of those people who are really into The Voice or even America's Got Talent and you think you are like a better person for supporting something less superficial and blah blah. No. Singing competitions are superficial. No concert is going to sell out if the performer looks like a troll--Landau Eugene Murphy, Jr or Javier Colon (winners of The Voice and America's Got Talent). And American Idol is starting to just give up with "winners" like Lee DeWyze or Phillip Phillips?? Omg or even Taylor Hicks. If you don't know who that is, you are doing completely fine. But seriously, the X-Factor has given us REAL stars, well X-Factor UK has...

Here are the current contestants on this season of X-Factor USA (in alphabetical order):

Carly Rose Sonenclar

At first, I was so annoyed with her. I just saw some 13 year old girl who really needed braces and I just skipped through her performances. And every week, she kept ranking at the top! So I had to figure out what the craze about her was. Damn, did I miss out. To quote Simon Cowell, "You are not a human being." She literally is so surreal and I regret not being her fan from day 1. 

(ELIMINATED :'( ) Cece Frey
Ever since her audition, she has been my favorite. I do not understand why the judges do not like her. They are just too old and do no understand what America enjoys listening to anymore. She is like a mix of Ke$ha and Katy Perry and Lady Gaga, but is still different. If that's still possible. She is definitely the underdog in the competition and deserves this win so much more than anyone else.

Diamond White
This girl is the reincarnation of Whitney Houston. Oh Lord. And she is just as alien as Carly Rose. When she was first sent home in week 1 of live shows, I was so sad. But then they brought her back and she was amazing.

Emblem3
I was really confused with this group. When they first auditioned, they seemed really douchey and arrogant. But their original song was so good and catchy. And they just kept getting more and more entertaining.

Fifth Harmony
These girls are bringing back the Destiny's Child and TLC style music to America. They originally auditioned individually, but were put together as a group in boot camp. For those of you who do not know, One Direction was formed the same way in Britain. And these girls are so good. Sometimes they are overshadowed and do not really stand out, but they do have amazing moments.

Tate Stevens
Tate is the final contestant for the over-25's group. Honestly, I do not understand why this category exists or why he is still in the competition. I believe he is only in the competition this far because he is the only artist who appeals to country music stars. All of the pop music fans' votes are split between 5 other acts whereas the die-hard country fans can concentrate all their efforts to one artist. Look for yourself. And to me, he just performs like a typical country artist. Nothing too unique or exciting.

Honorable Mentions

Paige Thomas
Paige was my number one boo until she got eliminated last week. I do not know why she got such a low amount of votes that week. Maybe the crude comments from LA Reid and Simon just manipulated the voters.

And this performance right here:

And I will NEVER understand why the judges never gave this artist a chance:

Parking Lot Etiquette

Who ever says that they LOVE to just spend their time roaming around in parking lots? No one. Then why are there always people driving their cars aimlessly throughout basically every parking lot--especially in LA. There needs to be a section in the driving test from the DMV on how to function as a integral part of society in parking lots. Until they do so, I will take it upon myself to educate the lesser beings of America (aka those annoying bitches who don't use their turn signals in parking lots).

Things to do:

• Actively pay attention
• There are 50 other people behind you who do not care about how funny your snapchat was.
• Use your turn signals
• You cannot "claim" a spot just by telling yourself, "I'm a strong, independent black woman and ain't no one gonna tell me otherwise."
• Go with the flow of the other cars
• Do not be that stingy bitch who has to go 5mph (not even touching the gas pedal).

Things NOT to do:

• Park a large car in a compact spot
• No explanation necessary.
• Stop to talk to a friend who is leaving the parking lot or going to opposite direction
• You're obviously going to see them again. And if you're catching up in the middle of a parking lot, you need to re-evaulate that relationship.
• Take an excessive amount of time to leave your parking spot
• In some neighborhoods, you will get shot for this.
• Parking your car on the van-accesible side region of a handicapped spot
• It doesn't matter if you are a handicapped designated driver, you still look like a douche. There are still other handicapped people that need that walkway.

Things I will hunt you down for:

• Not driving your car all the way into the spot
• Your car should never be sticking out of the line of cars nor should you be allowed to drive.
• Pulling into a parking spot when it has already been claimed
• If you are hit by the car that has already claimed the spot, ignorance is not an excuse for insurance companies. Fuck off and find another parking spot.
• Driving the wrong direction in a one-way parking lot
• Once again...no explanation necessary.
• Double parking
• Who are you

• Not parking within the lines
• Those white lines on the floor are not where you line up the center of your car. 

Hot Mess Flashback

Remember back in the 2004 when gas cost $2 a gallon, the Atkin's Diet was a thing, and wardrobe malfunctions were common. One of the most epic wardrobe malfunctions was that of America's sweetheart, Tara Reid. At P. Diddy's, what he called himself that year, birthday party, Tara Reid was just casually walking down the red carpet posing for photags in her quite classy, yet not tailored enough, black dress. She was embracing the attention, fixing her hair as her arm brushed against her dress to expose what became one of 2004's most infamous moments. I'll just let you see for your own eyes. Btdubs, this is NSFW.

An End to an Era

As many of you may have heard today, America has faced one of our toughest tragedies to date. This tragedy is so tremendous, that it will shock those around the world. Today, we were informed by the Music Television network, or MTV, that the world's greatest treasure, Jersey Shore, will be cancelled after its sixth season. This news was bittersweet. Perhaps more bitter if anything. But all great things must one day come to an end. And knowing Snooki, JWOWW, Deena, Sammi, Ronnie, Pauly, and Vinnie, (and I guess Mike...), they will not go out without having one amazing summer for us to watch. I have compiled a collection of gifs/videos/pictures that highlight the past five seasons of this artistic masterpiece. Enjoy:

Can't forget about Angelina

The Top 5 Overplayed Songs on the Radio

These are the only songs that are on the radio within every hour. In some instances, they've ended up on two of the three radio stations. And one rare occasion, one song on three different stations at the same time... Listen to them again here:

5. Somebody that I Used to Know
It's not indie or hipster if it's on three Top 40 radio stations at once.

4. Payphone
You're stuck at a payphone all day because they got disconnected in the last decade.

3. Give Your Heart a Break
How about we get a break from you crying all the time...

2. Niggas in Paris
We get it. Kanye and Jay-Z are fucking boss.

1. Call Me Maybe
The one song that cannot get too old or annoying, unless someone other than yourself starts to sing along and you need to shoot them. And watch this parody for a lawl:

Gold Mercedes-Benz Limo?!

Umm I would really not mind being in Cannes right now.

Stories from Beyond the Graveyard (kinda)

So I am currently back home for summer from LMU. It is basically hell here in Davis. I do not think I have ever been this bored in my life. Transitioning from such a fast-paced college life in Los Angeles to life in the suburbia in NorCal is a struggle. Apparently I was just as bored over Spring break (which was in February, more on that later) which I found out when I found a notebook I wrote in on my desk today. I must have been so bored that I just wrote out everything that was going on in my head while watching Netflix. I found it quite entertaining and so will you:

"How I Met Your Mother" its this amazing new, nah, not new, Emmy winning TV show that I have recently discovered on Netflix. I started the first episode the day after my Biology final when all my other friends were busy studying. I was straight up dgaf-ing because all I had left was a Calculus final which I knew I would ace--which I did. So I just sat in bed all day with some wine and caught up on all my TV shows. I finished most of them, no all of them. So I got on Netflix. And as always, there was nothing good to watch. But I came across HIMYM on my suggestions. All of my friends from home always talked about this show and I just decided to give it a chance. So I made myself a bowl of shitty microwave Pad Thai and mixed up some Dragonfruit Skyy and lemonade. And ever since December 15, 2011, I have been in love with this show. Almost as much as I love "Friends" and vodka. 

I am back in Davis for my Spring Break. It is really uncomfortable being in Davis for Spring break in the middle of February. I am the only one in Davis this week. Ok but, yeah I'm back home. I am currently all up to speed on HIMYM, but frankly, season 7 sucks. I feel like they completely lost focus of the show. I find myself frequently forgetting the main character's name with Tim instead of Ted. The show focuses way too much attention on Robin and Lily and Marshall now. I dgaf about the whole move to Long Island and how they don't like it. But I thought it was cool how Ted gave the apartment back to Lily and Marshall. 

Yeah but that's over. Now I am watching Father of the Bride Part II. I really thought the first one was funny and good. This move was probably why people think Steve Martin is funny because Cheaper by the Dozen was...not that great. Hmm writing in this journal has got me thinking...maybe I should keep like a diary or something. OMG SPARK OF GENIUS! I could make a blog and talk about that on my Med School resumé! IT'S DONE! I'M MAKING A BLOG ON MY LIFE...again.

Ok I actually found myself to be quite annoying/revolting.

Bitches on the Freeway

So I do write about cars and how amazing these cars are. But no Porsche, Mercedes or even Honda is going to be sick ass if the driver of that vehicle is a little bitch. I recently had to spend 4+ hours on the freeway driving to and back from a friend's birthday celebration. Never in my life have I been so frustrated. I had dealt with pretty much every annoyance that anyone could experience while driving on  the freeway.

Here is what pissed me off the most:

• Braking when the car in front of you slows down
• Braking to see the remains of a car accident
• Braking in general on the freeway is just not necessary
• Whenever my speedometer goes below 65 mph
• Whenever  I had to completely stop my car
• Driving behind some ghetto car that does not have functioning brake lights
• Driving behind some douche that thinks they're too cool to use their signals 
• Anyone that drives AT 65 mph in the FIRST lane of I-80
• When there is traffic only because people are BRAKING ON THE FREEWAY
• When I get stuck in the slow lane
• Trucks
• Hybrids
• Cars that tailgate my ass then pass me then drive slower than I am so that I have to pass them

So true

Basically, I wanted to kill myself. I was not even in the mood to stop for Starbucks because I just was so intent on getting home by lunchtime.  It took me a total of three hours to get from Fremont to Davis. No. That should never happen. Consider this blog post to be a Public Service Announcement for all Americans. If you cannot drive properly on the freeway, GTFO. 

Why is this car braking? WHY? GTFO!

Pretty Wild Flashback

Who remembers the gem produced by E! "Pretty Wild"? If you don't, you probably missed out on 9 episodes of the biggest train wrecks to ever grace the presence of E! Here's one of the highlights:

Light the Night - Free Tibet 2012

Every so often, I get serious. Yeah that actually happens. But this video was put together by one of my friends and this issue discussed in the video needs more awareness. So watch it. It's only 8 minutes. And these 8 minutes will make you more culturally relevant. Be trendy and share the video before it becomes a "thing" and everyone is already sharing.

One of my Life's Greatest Goals, Almost Accomplished

In life, we must set goals for ourselves to accomplish otherwise what are we doing with our lives? Ever since I have come down to Los Angeles, I have been yearning for something to accomplish. Like what am I doing with my life right now? As an 18 year old Pre-Med student at Loyola Marymount, what can I accomplish right now?

On Christmas Eve with my cousin I found that goal at our holy Mecca--Starbucks. She paid for her nonfat Awake Tea Latte with this shiny gold card, something that's presence still take away my breath. She had accomplished her goal in life to obtain this amazing gift from Starbucks: an exclusive rewards honor for getting 30 Starbucks reward stars. You may ask: "What is a Starbucks reward star and how can I get one?"

All one has to do is register online any Starbucks gift card that one may have just lying around at https://www.starbucks.com/account/signin. After that, you become a Welcome level rewards member. Just by registering your Starbucks card, you qualify for receiving a free birthday beverage. Imagine that. Spending no money at all and getting a free Starbucks as a birthday gift. Probably the best birthday anyone could imagine.

After buying five Starbucks drinks and getting five reward stars, you become a green level member. The perks of this are probably where I fell in love with this program. You get free select syrups and soy milk. Oh my God. On top of that, Starbucks will top off your brewed or iced coffee or tea for free. You think that's it? No. They will give you a free tall beverage along with the purchase of one pound of coffee beans.

Yeah yeah, a tall...probably one of the biggest flops to come from Starbucks. I mean why would anyone ever want a TALL drink from Starbucks?? ONLY 12 ounces of delicious, scrumptiousness?? Getting a tall Caramel Macchiato is like opting out for half of a dog, if you're into animals and getting pets and stuff like that. You cannot fully enjoy a Starbucks by getting a tall size. I really do not mind having to pay the extra like 40 cents for an actual beverage.

Ok but back to the rewards program. So you may already be overwhelmed by the amount of benefits that come along with only getting 5 stars. But hang in there and get your 30 stars. Remember the Gold card my cousin had? Get 30 drinks and Starbucks will send you a personalized Gold Starbucks Rewards card with your name and the date you became a rewards member. Not only do you get this amazing card, but after becoming a Gold level member, you receive a free beverage for every 15 stars and you receive personalized offers and coupons. How amazing and rewarding is that?! And all you have to do is continue living your life and drinking Starbucks.

But back to me and my goal. So I am currently at 22 stars. I became a member this January and I know that it should not have taken me this long to get this far, but I do not in fact have a car here in LA. So I can only go to Starbucks whenever a friend takes me there. And the Starbucks on campus at my school does not take Starbucks cards...don't get me started on that. If they did take Starbucks cards, I would have been at 30 stars within a month. However, my semester is basically over and I go back home to my car in one week so I am determined to reach 30 stars by the end of May.

Oh and get the Starbucks iPhone app. You can track how many stars you have and use your phone as a barcode if you're just trendy like that.

For more information:

Lamborghini Urus: Hottest Soccer Mom Car out there

Everyone. Needs. To. Look. At. This. OMG.

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That's a Hyundai...? Yes.

I've had this argument with multiple people lately when driving around. My friends know that I can recognize pretty much any car, which I can. Most of the time, they accept my observations and just move on. But thanks to the trolls at Hyundai, my life is a tad bit more stressful. So Hyundai has introduced a new model lately that are throwing a curveball for a lot of people. The Hyundai Equus is the highest end of cars that Hyundai offers. But for some odd reason, it does not look like a Hyundai to most people. Hyundai even went out of their way to stick on a completely different badge on this car than their regular Hyundai logo. Are they just accepting their reputation of cheap and stale cars? So to clarify for everyone out there. This is not a Rolls-Royce. Not a Lexus. Not a Mercedes-Benz. This car is not even from Europe or Japan. It is a South Korean Hyundai.

Not a Mercedes-Benz.

Not a Lexus.

Not a Rolls-Royce.

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Texting Trolls

I have come to the point in my life where the main form of communication I maintain with people, is through text messaging. Texting more people and more frequently will eventually lead to one encountering the dreadful texting troll. What is a texting troll? A texting troll is pretty much anyone that can cause any sort of annoyance to you due to texting. Let's take for example someone who you just met at a party and you exchange numbers. A texting troll will repeatedly text you throughout the night trying to reconnect even though you are obviously preoccupied. Or it could they could be the opposite. Say you have a lunch plans with a friend and he or she is such a troll that they will not respond to your texts until they arrive at the location only to text you, "where are you?" Texting troll. Don't be one. Stay away from them.

Here are some signs of a texting troll:

• Respond to your text with something out of the blue and irrelevant
• Fail to respond within an appropriate time frame
• Respond way too quickly
• Use grammar that makes the message completely incomprehensible
• Repeatedly resend basically the same message
• Send message as an iMessage and then as a text message (iPhones only)
• Respond to a text you sent in a group text in a different thread (iPhones only)
• Turn off their iMessage and send messages through text (iPhones only)
• Double texting
• One word responses

If you do any of the previous things, stop. Now.

Example of a multiple offender.

In some urgent cases, repeat messages are necessary.

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The motto I live by

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2012 International New York Auto Show

Every year at about this time, one of the most important auto shows takes place in New York. Production and concept cars are debuted to both the US and to the world. But yeah who cares about what the the auto show is. Here are some gems from this years auto show:

2012 World Car of the Year for Design:

Range Rover Evoque

2012 World Car of the Year for Performance:

Porsche 911

2012 World Car of the Year for...Being Green?:

Mercedes-Benz 250 CDI

New York Debuts:

2013 Acura RLX
Kudos to Acura for finally being relevant..

2013 BMW M6 Coupé and Convertible

2013 BMW X1

Dodge Viper SRT

2013 Lincoln MKZ

2014 Range Rover Evoque Convertible Concept

Award for My Favorite Car:

2013 Mercedes-Benz GLK

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Pinkberry Seasonal Flavor: Peach

So another one of my passions in life is frozen yogurt. But some of you may be unfortunate and live in a region of the world where Pinkberry has not salvaged your life yet. Those other stores that make your serve yourself and have barbarian toppings and a plethora of low-quality flavors have nothing on Pinkberry and its excellence. Why would anyone ever want to serve him or herself anything that is mediocre and not eye-appealing? So whenever Pinkberry releases one of their new, seasonal flavors, I am already one of the first to taste this new treasure to the world.

However, all geniuses have flawed inventions. This season's new flavor was Peach. Sounds delicious and refreshing to go with this long forgotten sunshine. When I went home for Easter break, Pinkberry was one of the first places that I had to revisit--to sample this new flavor and to recharge my life with Pinkberry amazingness. Honestly, this flavor was not what I expected of Pinkberry. Usually their seasonal flavors are so outstanding and vibrant as one would expect. But for some reason, Peach seemed just blah. It tasted as if I was at some low-end, self-serve frozen yogurt shack, but still looked as beautiful as a Pinkberry masterpiece. It didn't even look that exemplary. It might have well just been the original tart with specks of peach.

So out of disappointment and misery, I looked up to God, or in this case the Pinkberry menu, and saw that Salted Caramel was still available. Sometimes, old treasures are all we need.

Pinkberry Peach is available at Pinkberry stores for the summer season

Or if you're lucky enough and find Salted Caramel...

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Check out my Pinterest boards!

Lookin for some cars?
Sick A$$ Carz

Lookin for some sassy comments?
Controversial Shit

Follow these boards and my profile in general. And if you don't have a Pinterest yet, request an invite and be culturally relevant. If you don't know what Pinterest is, you have some serious issues in your life that you have to evaluate. 

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First Car Post: 2012 BMW 328i

So whenever I make a post about a car, I'll basically just be reviewing it. But not just like the specs and other boring stuff. I will contribute unique descriptions that I feel that a car presents itself with.

2012 BMW 328i:
This is probably my favorite car that's available right now. If I could go out and buy any car right now, I would head down to the BMW dealership and get this ASAP. BMW finally came out with a brand new 3-Series this year and it blows away almost every previous 3-Series and pretty much every other competitor. I mean, just look at it! There has to be a reason that when you drive down almost any street in LA that you will see at least five 3-Series. And now that BMW has come out with this new version, it's the perfect time to be unique--until another crop of teenagers turn 16.

General Specs:

• MSRP of $34,900
• 2.0L I4 Engine
• 240 horsepower
• 33 mpg

Car Personality: Fierce, "move-out-the-way-bitch" mentality 

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Words of Wisdom by Chelsea Handler

You go, Chelsea. Tell 'em how it's done. 

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