I have been listening to her music since she came out with the album, "Pies descalzos" in 1996, which was very rock sounding and alternative feeling. So as a six year old I loved how different Shakira was especially with her voice and her "crazy hair" at the time. And I pretty much have been listening to her ever since. When I finally learned what being a philanthropist was I begin loving Shakira even more because she loves helping people in need all over the world. Also, I am Colombian just like Shakira :) But anyway, I love that she writes her own music and most of the time she also composes it as well, which is super awesome because she's so talented.Â
Anyhow, The Voice is a super cool show and every single season I fall in love with one of the contestants and become really obsessed with them. So far, this season has been super funny and I like that the new judges are giving a lot of the contestants the chances that they deserve. I will probably talk about a single contestant soon, and will give a review of what I think once the teams are chosen.
I'm excited to see week after week who makes it into the teams, and who ends up winning this season. Alright this is all I've got this week, but if you want to ask a question or give your own opinion about The Voice then go ahead and comment! It's always appreciated :)
It seems this year most of the movies that are coming out were originally books. I'm going to be talking about one that I saw this past weekend and two that are coming out in August but there trailers came out recently.
Before The Host there was the Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters trailer. Let me tell you how skeptical I am of this movie. I was so excited when they were making the first one and was really disappointed. This was really upsetting especially since Chris Columbus (who did the first two Harry Potter movies-and did them really well) was making it. I thought he would never make the disaster that was The Lightening Thief. So watching this trailer I see some things that aren't spot on but it looks really good. I'm very excited for the movie and hopefully they did a better job.
Another ad before the movie was of The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones. I am so happy with this because it looks amazing! I love the casting, the ads (yes two) and basically everything about everything. I can't even speak right now because I just watched the new one that came out today.
You can go see The Host now but will have to wait until August for TMI and Sea of Monsters though you can read all of the books now. Click on the titles for links to buy the books.
Are you guys going to see these movies? If you've seen The Host what was your reaction? Can't wait for TMI like me? Want to talk about SoM trailer? Converse with me through the ask!
I canât just be from Richmond, Virginia and not talk about one of my favorite pop rock bands that were born right here in the heart of the RVA music scene: CONDITIONS. Conditions is an amazing band who always delivers when they get to play live shows in their home town. These four guys: (Brandon Roundtree â Vocals / Alex Howard â Guitars / Corey Thomas â Bass Guitar / Ryan Tinsley â Drums) are always full of energy and always get super stocked to show their hometown all the new songs theyâve been working on.
I went to a Conditions' show back on January 31st (2013) where they played with indie bands like HRVRD and other bands like Sleeping With Sirens. This was the first show in a long time that Conditions had some new songs and they sounded amazing! So as always I was super excited for their new album to come out. AND ITâS OUT!! Their new album titled, âFull of Warâ came out yesterday March 26th and I pre-ordered my copy from Amazon.com so I was able to download the whole album at midnightâŚ.which I did, and I have been listening to it all day :) And for me, it was well worth the wait. Brandon delivers some powerful vocals that do not disappoint, and like their first album, âFluorescent Youthâ, these guys are pouring their hearts out into their lyrics. Each song is so full of soul that it moves every fiber in my beingâŚokay I might be a little too emotional when it comes to music but you should go listen to these guys especially if youâre from RVA. My favorite song so far is âSkeletonâ because itâs so catchy and probably because I heard it at their show so it sounds familiar to me.
Now that Iâve done my thing, you should go sample their new album, (and maybe even their first album âFluorescent Youthâ if you havenât gotten a chance to listen to it) on iTunes or Amazon and pretty please âlikeâ them on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/conditionsband
This album has also been released at music stores nationwide so you can find it at any BestBuy, F.Y.E. or Hot Topic stores.
Now go find it and BUY it!!
And remember to always help support your local artists :) :)
âI lost myself in her again, but I donât careâŚand even when Iâm all alone, sheâs standing thereâŚso I lie awake and I waste away to disappear
for a momentâŚis she only in my dreams?âŚwill I ever be released?âŚsheâs my best mistake and I like paying for itâ
                               âFrom the song âBest Mistakeâ
Driving down the highway you see cars slowing and you curse at your bad luck. Â You slowly creep along the road as you watch the minutes tick by. Â As you finally get to the reason for the traffic you see a collision; two cars sitting on the side of the rode, dents and tears in both of the cars. Â Someone was not paying attention, maybe on a cell phone, or trying to find something on the floor of the car, then hitting the car in front of them. Â A police car behind, maybe even an ambulance, with flairs making you move out of your lane. Â As you slowly move by the scene, you take a good look at the destruction of the cars and possibly the drivers or passengers lives. Â During the time it takes for you to check out the problem and drive past you may pray for the well being of the people in the cars or even curse the rubberneckers for making you late for work. Â Either way this is not new to you; it may even be a norm. Â Although when we pass these situation we are sad to see it, we are not shocked and as soon as we pass, we very rarely even think about it again and go on about our day.
When I took driver's ed my sophomore year of high school I remember my teacher telling me, "Car accident is not an appropriate term and should not be used, it is a car crash". Â I never really understood why, if you look away for a second you could very possibly "accidentally" run a red light or not see the person in front of you stop and then there is the "accident". Â Although my new driver common sense did not understand this, I have through the years been able to realize the incite that my teacher possessed. Â
 I remember the first car crash I was in, I was no older than four and my mom was driving in our car that I had appropriately named Whitey, because it was white.  An elderly woman, who could barely see over the steering wheel, hit our car on the drivers side and pushed our car all the way to the curb on my side of the car.  My moms door was crushed to the point that she had to crawl out my side of the car.  I donât remember where we were, where we were coming from or where we were going but I remember my panic and my moms worry that she tried to shadow, as well as the teddy bear the police officer gave me.  The traumatic situation has not left my memory all though i could not tell you anything else about that year of my life.  Car crashes have affected my life in many ways, many bad ways.  Until recently I have not thought about how much.  Two years ago my Nana was killed in a car crash.  We are still not sure what happened but it was not her fault.  The oncoming car hit mostly on her side because she moved the car as far over as she could, saving my papa.  In a way my nana gave her life so that her love of her life could still stay with us.  She was much more than my grandmother, she was my friend and confidant.  This has changed my life forever and I miss her everyday.  Two weeks ago my friend got into a car accident and I was on the scene; it was two days before my nanas birthday.  My friends car was totaled and she had to go to the hospital.  Seeing her car and seeing her being strapped to the stretcher, made me really think about what we call âaccidentsâ.
These drivers who hit my mom and me, my nana and my friend would have all said it was an accident, but I blame them wholeheartedly. Â An accident is something that you can not control, but the whole point of driving is control. Â This is not an accident, it was a mistake; a mistake that people make everyday. Â WIth the use of the word accident we are almost letting the person off, making it sound like it could not have been helped. Â Paying attention is the biggest part of having control over your car and driving. Â It is hard to say what could change this view on driving and car crashes, could it be making the driving age older or making driving laws even more strict. Â This subject is debated all the time, because we are all affected by cars and the drivers in them. Â What we need to change is the way we see this situation and understand the importance of good driving habits. Â I will not lie, I have found myself drifting off into lala land when I am driving and then being forced back to reality when I see brake lights in front of me. Â This startling instance makes me really think about what I am doing and drive better and pay more attention, if only for the rest of the day. Â This happens to everyone once in awhile but that âaccidentâ could have turned into a great mistake, because of my lack of attention. Â Â
Even though we will always have bad drivers in our world we need to make sure we all understand the consequences and understand that there is no such thing as a âcar accidentâ.
Today I want to talk about Evan Pharmakis, who is my favorite musician at the moment. Iâve known about him for a while, since he was in the band called Vanna, in which he was lead guitarist and singer. He truly made the band what it was and he was the reason I listened to them in the first place. Evan recently left the band and jumpstarted this project Wind in Sails.Â
If you are fan of City and Colour, The Lumineers, Mumford & Sons, and Anthony Green, give Wind In Sails a listen and buy his album, you wonât regret it! Â
You can sample his songs in this website http://www.windinsails.bandcamp.com or you can just go on YouTube and take a listen as well by searching âWind In Sails.â
Make sure you follow him on Facebook, where you can also see some of his merch. Iâve already gotten two t-shirts (and theyâre awesome!) by contacting him on Fb:Â http://www.facebook.com/windinsails
This week Iâm posting about My Mad Fat Diary, The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, ranting about The Office, and reviewing the new show Vikings. Also Iâll give a book recommendation that I think you guys will enjoy.
Another story centered on a diary is the Lizzie Bennett Diaries. This time I can give a link! The series is a modern telling of Pride and Prejudice, if Elizabeth had a camera and a YouTube account. They are mainly five minute long videos and itâs very interesting to see how the story might seem different but how the differences do fit for the society we live in today. (Spoiler: I also love how Jane said sheâd kick Bingâs ass if he did something bad to her again. Sassy Jane is the best). If you like the VlogBrothers you should already know about this because Hank Green is producing it and Iâm sure because of the wildly success of it they will be doing another book like this. Sadly this is ending soon but you can always re-watch or watch for the first time on their YouTube page.
Speaking of things that are endingâThe Office. Do the writers want to purposefully have us hate the show because itâs ending? I swear if Jim and Pam break up Iâm going to go to NBC and go all Dwight on their butts! What really gets me angry is I watched 30 Rock too and, though I didnât want them to end either, they had an awesome final season. Nothing changed, nobody left, and I literally started tearing up at that stupid song that Jenna Maroney sang. I understand why Steve Carell left but this season it just seems they put the interns in there because everybody else jumped ship. All Iâm going to say is that the final episode better bring everyone back for a screening of the first episode either at someoneâs house or in the warehouse and everyone gets dressed up, Michael says something stupid but funny and we all get that sense of nostalgia of what the show used to beâawesome.Â
Last night I watched Vikings on the History channel. I was very scared because I am not a huge blood person but they didnât show anything gory except for a head after it was cut off. I was actually surprised at how much I liked it and am going to keep watching it. I donât know if itâs because Rick Riordan is going to write about Norse mythology or because my dad said weâre related to Vikings but Iâm starting to like these guys. Anyway check the show out itâs on Sundays at 10 p.m. on the History channel.
Now for the book recommendation: Looking for Alaska by John Green. It's about a boy who doesn't have a lot of friends and then decides to go to a boarding school where his whole life changes. He meets some awesome friends that get him into trouble and a big event turns his life upside down. If you want to know more about it here's the link to it on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. It's a really quick read and such a great book that introduces you to awesome people like John and Hank Green. Check it out and tell me how you like it by hitting the ask button. Have a book recommendation for me? Put it in the ask section too and Iâll read it or tell you what I thought of it if I already read it.
