THE NARRATIVES

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It’s been a while (88 days to be exact). I apologize. I’m sorry. I hope this post will not only give you an update on my life, but valid explanation for my absence as well.

For starters, I started college (just finished my first semester). In fact, I wrote the previous post my first month in. Unfortunately, I couldn’t keep up (you’ll understand later in this post) with posting. As you know, college doesn’t pay for itself. Well, not for me at least. Which leads me to my second explanation: work. I was hired in the middle of August but hours didn’t start picking up until we opened (September 24th). On top of this, I applied for an online editing position and a photographer position for my school’s mag and got accepted for both. Unfortunately, things did not work out due to some miscommunication with the editing position so I’m now standing with the photographer position. Which is fine because that’s more work/study time. Moreover, I’ve assisted a few companies with promoting their merchandise which took a bit of time. Lastly, I’ve been feeling uninspired. I’m not sure if this is what college has done or just lack of sleep but it just feels awful. Because of this, I stopped posting my thoughts on Twitter (this seemed to help) and utilized Pinterest and google to find inspiration. Of course these could be viewed as lame excuses as to why I haven’t really made any stable friends yet or most importantly, written anything, which is why I want to leave you with the biggest thing I’ve learned these past 88 days:

Stop waiting for the perfect time to do something, just do it.

With that being said, I did get inspired. I’ve started a project/series (whatever you want to call it) titled “ROYGBIV”. This project will include numerous pictures of objects located at specific locations following ROYGBIV’s order. 

Here’s ROYGBIV: LACMA

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Although he’s loved art for quite some time, art enthusiast Jose Craig-Torres found his true passion for art while in the midst of overcoming personal dilemmas. According to Craig- Torres it was at “the peak of adolescent misunderstanding” and he was “just trying to get those darn feelings across."

From M.C Escher to John Singer Sargent, Torres has many influences from the late 19th century and early 20th century because they all “posses the poise and expression” he tries to go for with portraits, especially those of women. Like most people, Jose enjoys creating his masterpieces while listening to loud music which  influences his art as well. Usually in his “tragic” moods he’ll “blast operas or symphonies” dating eras centuries from 2015.

Success wise, Jose has accomplished quite a bit including contributing to six different art shows and a few competitions in Utah. “I go for things whenever they pop up, they’re [either] so fun and motivational or really depressing,” he explained.  In addition, he has improved on himself and well being despite the things that he’s encountered in his earlier life and that’s what really matters.

Although Jose is popular for his canvas art, his dream occupation consists of graphic designing and animating. “I really want to do independent animated films, maybe even real life film too. That would be incredible,” he envisaged.

As for the future, Jose will continue working on his masterpieces while enjoying music and Ben and Jerry’s “Banana Split” (a flavor he’s currently digging). Furthermore, he will continue to build up his followers on his social networks to gain the popularity he deserves.

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Yesterday was my 18th birthday (finally) and I decided to do something that I surprisingly haven’t done in my eighteen years of life, go to the Orange County Fair.

My 18th birthday was definitely memorable to start off with considering the fact  I couldn’t find my keys when we arrived at the ticket booth! At this point I was already figuring out what to put on my tombstone because I was sure my mom would kill me. Luckily, a parking security guard gave me my keys (that I left in my car door, how could I be so irresponsible?!) and we continued on with our day.

My boyfriend and I purchased 100 tickets in total because rides shouldn’t cost that much right? Wrong. Well it actually depends on what type of rider you are (wild or calm). In my case, I was about half way done with my tickets in the first hour (bummer). On the bright side, running out of tickets gave us more time to check out the wacky food.

After stopping by the restroom to wash my hands after we ate, I heard some engines followed by, “I hear a car, let’s find it!” Then I found myself sitting in a stadium watching monster trucks run over old Pontiacs. I admit it was pretty cool, but it wasn’t exactly how I planned to spend my special day. By the time the old cars were smashed flat, the sun was gone and the fair was beautifully illuminated by the attractions (photo time!). So we decided to end our long day by looking at the fair from above with the fair’s chair lift, which was also convenient because our feet were dead.

Overall my planned day turned out to be the exact opposite but it was still a stellar day. It was very much worth getting lost on the way back home. Regardless,  I’m ready for you Adulthood!

[For more pictures of my evening, click here. If you want to go to the OC Fair, admission is $3 on August 6th & 13th from noon-3pm. Don’t have a ride? Don’t trip potato chip!  Visit uber.com/go/ocfair (new accounts only!) and enter “OCFAIR” to sign up for your free first ride (up to $25). Now treat yo self! Have fun!]

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Onzie Active Wear

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instagram: @onzie, @thenarratives, @la.temple 

Products shown:

Elastic Bra Top- Black

Knot Back Tank Top-Vanilla

Filmed/ Edited By: Jessica Doukenick

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"Let the colors of Holi spread the message of peace and happiness.” That’s exactly what it did. The colored powders weren’t the only thing diverse at this jamboree. People on all sides of the Los Angeles area came to this festival of color. There were people of all types of races, ethnicities, sexual preferences, heights, and religions celebrating the same thing, happiness. Often times people are too focused on the future that they tend to take the time to appreciate the present. Furthermore, a lot of people put so much time in their lives caring about what other people think of them. From the couple hours of me being at this festival, I came in contact with so many positive people. I was and still am overjoyed about my experience. So much, that I want to share with you some positive tips to lift your spirits for not only Monday (losing an hour of sleep is always a bummer!), but whenever you need your spirits to be lifted.

Everything is temporary. Although this can be good and bad, on the upside, your bad days will soon come to be brighter days. Smiling is actually proven to change your mood! It is YOUR life. If you want to do something that makes you happy, do it (as long as it doesn’t hurt other people)! Sing! Even if you sound horrible, not only does it brighten up the mood, but it is proven to prevent you from getting sick. Think positive. Why spend minutes of your life being mad, when you can be happy? Help someone. In my experience helping people has made me happy because I know I made someone’s life a little easier. If you do not like something, change it. If you can’t change it, accept it and move on. Treat yourself occasionally. Spend your time with positive people. Most importantly, be yourself!!

Now remember, being negative is a choice but happiness is an alternative.

Few more pics here

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     So for the past couple weeks, I've been struggling through some personal problems(not to worry this isn't a whiny rant about my problems). You see, when i have dilemmas, I tend to ignore them. Other people tend to express it through fighting (not recommended), heavy drugs (heavily not recommended), or through the arts. Encouraging my bad habit, I decided to go to my local art museum. Yeah it may be small, convenient, and cheap but the art was as great as my city (FYI: I love Long Beach!).

     So I dragged my boyfriend along with me to the building that contained the big, beautiful, canvases and sat and appreciated the art (hence the cliché, but real picture). The last time we've visited the place was in elementary school, mostly the time when I thought boys were scarier than they are now and when he probably thought girls actually had bug bites under their shirts- maybe I don't know. Either way, we were both too young to appreciate the field trip for what it was, a learning experience, and not just an occasion to get a better school lunch.

     In addition to the beautiful view of the city's beach right in the back, the art was breathtaking. I never realized how big, beautiful, and subjective art could be. Some paintings I thought was about one thing, Fernando thought was about something totally different. The interpretation is all influenced by a person's current emotional state (just like the Rorschach test). The awesome thing is that most of the artists are either from or currently live in California. It was mind- blowing to think about, because they were once in my shoes: 17, anxious to grow up, but also baffled about life. I'm sure they ran into some negative comments about the way they chose to live their life, but now their work is on a freshly painted, white wall. They beat the game of life. They did what they truly wanted to do.

     It gave me hope. I realize that happiness is just like art, subjective. Living my life to someone else's standards of happiness may not make me happy. If i want to be happy, it has to be for the reasons I want to be happy. Which really is the meaning of this "Narrative". Never give up in what you want to do. Whether you want to be a writer or a mime, if it makes you happy please do it. Most importantly, if you don't like what you're doing in life, change what you're doing so that you do like it. Life is short.

Be happy.

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Encouraged by her father on a family visit to Brazil, Sarah Hilton pursued photography.  ”I was taking photos of the simple things like the sky and flowers and he was really encouraging,” began Hilton. Her love for photography bloomed on this day. ”I became really fond of taking photos, and I got a camera for my birthday that year!¨ she exclaimed.

Born and raised in Southern California, Hilton took advantage of the many scenes the Golden State had to offer. “I’d have to say my favorite photoshoot would be this one I did with my best mates: Aubrey, Flower, and Sienna. It was so fun and chill, it strengthened our friendship,” Hilton explained as she recalled her stunning photoshoot at Los Cerritos Park.

Moving to the UK almost led to the deletion of her Instagram account, followed by roughly two thousand people. As before, her father encouraged her to carry on with photography and this time, the continuation inspired her to work on her self portrait skills. “Photography has taught me so many things such as friendships and parading through hardships,” the young photographer said.

As great as she is in her hobby, she plans on majoring in something in the medical field “just in case being a photographer doesn’t work out.” At any rate, whether Sarah Hilton decides to major in photography and becomes a photographer or becomes an RN, she’s already inspired so many people to go after their dreams.

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It was one thing that was on my bucket list that I NEEDED to cross off before I left for college: visit Sunken City. It really wasn’t a journey, given that it is in San Pedro, California which is fairly close to home. Despite that, off we went, four teenagers in a silver JEEP Liberty cruising up the steep hills of San Pedro.

When we got there, Ari and I were a little afraid because Will and Fernando didn’t tell us the way we would be entering: crawling under a little hole in a wired gate. It didn’t really click to me that we were trespassing until i saw the “DANGER” signs every where. 

The view was breathtaking. My heart “sunk”! There were quite a few people enjoying the view, including a band recording a music video, and the creative graffiti artists. 

Given that it is a “sunken city”, there’s still building and train track remains all over. Also keep in mind its on the coast of California, so if you do plan on going, please dress comfortable! This place is extremely rocky with a lot of loose soil. Even though it is dangerous, I do recommend going if you are into the outdoors. 

Before we stopped at 7/11 to buy slurpees and chips, we took a detour to visit the Korean Bell of Friendship. This was a safer experience (but not as fun as Sunken!). We did manage to take a few pictures of the sunset before the fog persuaded us to go back home.

Overall, it was a great day, with incredible people. Definitely worth the scuffs on my GUESS leather boots.

View more photos of my day here

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     From the day he wrote a rap “to be part of the fun” at his friend’s house, Jordan Brown, also known as “Neo Stripes”, has built a name for himself. Although he has only a few songs published on his SoundCloud, Brown officially has one hundred songs written and produced. Neo Stripes feels he’s “not at that level yet” to release such a great amount of music. 

     The “Stranded” artist is greatly known for his involvement in Desu Boys, a rap group originating in the fall of 2011. The group is not only associated with their music, but with their creativity, carefree way of living, and unique way of dress. “Shit, i love my friends,” admitted Brown. Most recently he was featured on the track titled “B U R I E D" along with other Desu member, Jordan Miller, also known as “Laterday$$$”. Together, the “LaterStripes” duo and producer, Muhammad “Royce Charms" Rauch, created a song that is currently at 2,163 plays. Their love for and commitment to Desu is expressed by the line, “Desu boys tatted on my grave, on my casket."

     When he’s not making music, the Desu Boys contributor spends his time at the St. Mary’s Medical Center, down the street from Long Beach Poly. He doesn’t stop there though. The rapper has an on going list of ideas “whether it be fashion, art, and shoe designs” and feels as it is almost impossible that he “will not contribute anything to the world.”

     As of now, the artist has received his first college acceptance letter from San Diego State University. Whatever Jordan Brown decides to pursue in life, it will be remarkable. “I want my name to be remembered in the world,” the creator explained. And it certainly will be.