Drumroll, Please!

Last night the Encores Singing Competition took place and I hope some of you were able to make it! This year, we had an amazing assortment of performers and I am extremely proud to be able to say that I shared a stage with such talented people. Unfortunately, I did not place, but I want to make it clear that I partook in this event purely for the sake of making friends and meeting people. And that I did! I actually met a girl, Zina, who shares the same vocal instructor as I do! I have to admit, I didn't know her too well prior to the competition, but now we've exchanged numbers, social media info... so basically... BFFs? I also had the chance to really connect with a few other competitors, Angel, Jacob, Mayu, Sophia, Leana, Shelby, Mary, Nicole, Linn, and Alexa. It was definitely an eye-opening experience and I hope I try out next year!

Missing a few, but here are most of the contestants!

Also, working with the SBCC Ambassadors, Belle, Linan, and Ester, made me appreciate the experience even more! These three ladies were definitely stressed or confused and most importantly: had to deal with us! I know we all had so many questions and I'm just hands-down grateful for everything that you and the rest of the Ambassadors put together. I know it couldn't have been easy!

However, if you happened to miss out on the event, here's a quick recap:

• All of the singers went through their songs as per usual... But so many of us were losing our minds because of how nervous we were before walking out on that stage. Then afterwards, some of us were shaking, freaking out or high-fiving our peers backstage just feeling absolutely RELIEVED to be done.
• We sang Hey Jude by The Beatles as our group song and just basked in the moment together.
• Immediately following our group number, we surprised the audience with a really terrible dance to Thriller by Michael Jackson. The World Dance for Humanity group came by and taught us the dance in basically 2 hours. So, you can imagine how a group of singers did on this! But, I have to admit, it was just so fun to let loose on stage and share a smile with the audience and each other.
• Last, but not least, we had three really cool people as the Top 3! Olivia, Paisley, and Leana won! Congrats, girls (if you're reading)! All of the competitors received a movie ticket certificate in thanks for participating in the competition. 

And that was it for the show! We also had incredibly funny MC's, Felipe and Phillip, both SBCC Ambassadors, sharing the stage with us. Definitely could not have done this without any of the Ambassdors, the audience, and most of all, the contestants! I definitely wish I had more time to spend with them, instead of really getting to know them the day of... But, I made some new friends and had a very satisfying experience which is what counts! Do what you want to do and I promise you won't regret it! :)

See you next post,

Chey

Currently listening to Kids (Oliver Nelson Remix) by Mikky Ekko

Back to My Roots

Chey feat. Mama and Papa Yang

I recently just had a paper due for my ETHS 101 class which gave me the chance to interview an immigrant of my choice. I chose to interview my dad. Back in my junior year of high school, I had a similar assignment to interview an immigrant and I chose to interview my grandmother. Hearing her story really made me appreciate what a fulfilling life I live. Coming from a land of poverty and being able to live comfortably in the land of opportunity is exactly what my family strived for when they immigrated to America. Without both of these assignments, I doubt I'd really delve into my family history and their stories and if I did, it wouldn't occur until maybe a couple years later. Sometimes the curiosity crosses my mind and I like thinking about it, but I don't think I'd ever really interview either one of my parents or my grandparents.

Chey, Cousin & Grammies

I'm a first generation American-born Hmong and I personally think that it's absolutely amazing to be able to say that. Not a lot of people can say they were the first generation to be born in America. Growing up with a grandparent in my home, I am bilingual and that's also another thing that I'm really proud of saying! Being able to comfortably converse with my grandparents or even just speaking Hmonglish (English/Hmong mix) with my parents is a complete blessing. Not very many Hmong grandchildren can communicate with their grandparents anymore.

Chey, Aunts, Grammies, Cousins, and Mama Yang

Chey, Cousins, Siblings, Uncles and Papa Yang

Participating in the ETHS 101 assignment helped me realize all of the hardships that my family has gone through to get on the both of their feet. I knew I had it pretty good, growing up in a home where I never went to bed hungry, had jackets, socks, jeans and shoes, being able to really open up to the both of my parents about my personal problems... In the essay, I really did want to write about so many things, but there was just too much that I couldn't fully interpret through words. The majority of my extended family are also immigrants and the fact that they all had to undergo hardship at such young ages are things that I can't even process. The reason for so much Hmong immigration to the U.S. was that there was a war taking place and families wanted any kind of safety that they could get. All of the collected research and answers that I got from my dad's story and my grandma's story touched my heart and I could not be thankful enough for my grandparents, aunts, uncles, and parents for fighting their way to America and giving me the life I have today! So many of us don't know where we came from, our history and our culture, but I think if you have ANY way of reconnecting with your family history, do it! A lot of people believe in the saying that if it happened in the past, then it did. What's the point of bringing it back? It definitely helped me define my character a little more and helped me realize how lucky I am to be going to school in a beautiful place and how free I am in comparison to those living where the majority of my family used to live.

See you next post,
Chey

Currently listening to Can't Sleep Love by Pentatonix

**These currently listening to things are song recommendations in case you didn't know! I'm not saying I have the GREATEST taste in music, but definitely take a listen if you can!

California Grown

A couple of cards I made; Remade two of them & another isn't pictured!

Yesterday, I was feeling a bit crafty and I also really missed some of my closest friends, so I made a couple of cards and they should be sent out by the end of today! Only about three of them either know or have an idea that I'm sending them a letter, so it should be a nice surprise to everyone.

I know it sounds a little odd, but I've always wanted to try out card making because I never really saw the point in buying someone a card that you don't really like or the saying is just plain weird. With homemade cards, you have the option to design the size, style, look and the caption in the card without having to worry if the card suits the person or not. Since I do own so many craft scissors, stickers, tape, a couple stamps and card stock paper, I decided to give it a whirl and put together six, really simple cards. I wanted to leave a little mark on each card so on the back, I either put Made With Love, Chey or California Grown - C.Y.

Stamped and ready to send!

Three of the cards are going across California! One to San Diego, another to Los Angeles and one last one to Davis. Two other cards are going to be flown to Illinois and Minnesota and the last one is going to be making its way to Vancouver, BC, Canada. I don't get why snail mail isn't a cool thing anymore. I think it's awesome to know that you can send stuff to someone hundreds or even thousands of miles away from you! E-mails, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram are pretty cool too, sometimes, but I love the feeling that I get when I've received something in the mail.

See you next post,
Chey

Currently listening to Livin' Easy by Cody Simpson

Check Your E-Mails!

When starting college, some of us feel like we're walking in blindfolded and we're not yet comfortable with our surroundings. Since I've graduated from a local high school, I would like to say that I have more experience with SBCC than most people entering here do. However, I'd also like to stop myself there because first of all, I didn't even know there were so many clubs and organizations on campus and second of all, I didn't know a thing about transferring because I thought you just had to take a couple of classes, get credits, and get out.

I attended Dos Pueblos High School in Goleta, CA and over there, the school offered dual enrollment which I kindly took advantage of. Dual enrollment is essentially taking a class and receiving both high school and college credits once you pass. Any high school students that might read this, I highly suggest enrolling yourself in these classes if your school offers it!

Free Pizza and Soda @ Counseling Event!

Last week I received an e-mail from the SBCC Counseling Department who announced that they were having a small pizza lunch get-together for the local high school graduates and there, we would be able to sign up for a meeting with our designated counselor. Instead of same-day sign ups and appointments, I thought this was a great idea and it would give me time to really think about what I wanted to discuss with my counselor. However, to my surprise, only three students, myself included, had showed up to the event. I thought to myself, "Did people just not read their e-mails? There was free pizza..." During the time I was there, I had a chance to talk to the two girls, Ana and Gabby. They were both from Santa Barbara High School and were so kind and down-to-earth. I also had a chance to talk to my counselor, Christy Grant. She was so lovely and our meeting was super quick and by the time I knew it, I already had an appointment made for the next week.

If any local graduates are reading tonight or tomorrow morning, I hope you guys take advantage of this opportunity and ask all the questions you can think of! This counseling event takes place from 11 AM to 1 PM tomorrow, in the Memorial Square near the Student Services building. There's going to be FREE PIZZA. I wish you guys the best in your academic endeavors!

See you next post,
Chey

Currently listening to Let's Love by Echosmith

Catching Up

Santa Barbara Storm (10/14/15)

There was so much to do last week and so much that HAPPENED as well! Since tomorrow's Hump Day and all, I thought it wouldn't be too late to let you guys know what happened last week.

SBCC @ Night

Monday started out pretty nice and sunny, as usual, but I decided to stay at the library a little later to finish up homework and study for an upcoming exam. I ended up staying until around 8:30pm and went to the gym, then headed home! Overall, I was pretty satisfied with my day and it was nice to know I could just come home, crawl into bed and sleep.

Tuesday, I also decided that it might be a good idea to stay in the library until it was late, but boy was I wrong. I stuck around until about 1:00pm and then crossed the bridge to get lunch! I enjoyed the California Melt from the infamous JSB Café. Absolutely delicious. I definitely recommend spoiling yourself with all of the great dishes that they have to offer there. However, after my little break, I headed back over to the library and tiredness hit me like a truck around 7:30pm. I ended up staying until 9:30pm, but I think I spent my time a little less efficiently that I did on Monday. Some perks of our library are that it's open until 11pm Monday through Thursday, the Buzz Shack—coffee, food, snacks— is open until 7 pm and there's free wifi! It's a wonderful place to be if you really need to focus on a project or just get some homework completed.

Wednesday, I was just too burned out to even think about staying in at the library again, so I decided to head straight home after class. Once I got home, I decided to take an hour nap, but that was rudely interrupted by a spontaneous thunderstorm. It took me a second to realize that what I had just heard was thunder. There was all kinds of talk about El Niño making its way here and we finally had an hour of just downpour which was amazing.

Thursday was another day of school, not much taking place.

Pumpkin Bars feat. Sam

But Friday was great. As most of you know, I'm in the Encores SBCC Singing Competition (tickets are available here) and we had our first meeting together! However, living on the edge of Goleta and having to travel to the edge of Santa Barbara, I was stuck in the 101 South traffic because I-5 was closed due to a mudslide! So yes, I was a bit late, but we actually have a surprise performance together (Melanie & Emily, if you're reading this, I saw you guys watching us. Just FYI, I was waving at you guys and didn't get a wave back. I'm a little offended!). So please come and invite your friends! Then later on that night, my friend Sam and I had a pumpkin party, where we baked pumpkin bars and just appreciated the existence of pumpkins. We both have a minor obsession with the fall so given that it's mid-October, we have no excuse to avoid the pumpkin party. Our friend, Brenna, came later in the night and we watched a TV show and talked a couple good reads that we've come across since the last time that we all got together.

Then, ending my week with Saturday, my friend Maya who is currently attending UCLA, came back home for a weekend visit and I spent about two hours with her! We caught up with a Frozen Yogurt date at Yogurtland at Calle Real and then browsed for stuff at Michaels and then I dropped her off at home. Definitely refreshing to see one of my best friends home again and just being able to hang out in general.

And.. that's how my eventful week went!

See you next post,
Chey

Currently listening to Funny (Live) by Tori Kelly

You Know What Fall Means...

My December Monthly Spread

Fall is here! Well, it's been here, but you know what I mean. I can't believe it'll be Halloween, Thanksgiving, then the December holidays dancing on through and we're already into winter break! I just made a trip out to Michael's Arts and Crafts Store at Fairview in Goleta and they had so many Halloween decorations set out on display as well as some Thanksgiving goodies too! If you don't know, I really do love arts and crafts, but I can't say that I'm any good at it.

Cowl & Scarves made by Chey

I've recently gotten into this new hobby of planner art and it's basically scrapbooking, but for your planner! My cousin has been doing it for a couple of months now, possibly a year (?), and she has some amazing pages which really inspired me to start on my own planner art. It basically consists of a lot of decorative tape, stickers, and artistic handwriting — all of which I don't absolutely have. My cousin gave me a little starter kit, but it didn't go with any of the themes that I had in mind, although, she included loads of adorable stickers and fun-colored page flags. So my mom needed to drive out to Ventura to go to Joanne's and Hobby Lobby was right next door! I decided to pop in there and turns out that there was 40% off of all the Christmas craft supplies so guess what I did? I splurged on Christmas stickers and decorative tape! So hopefully, my creativity will expand, I'll put together spreads that flow well and it will all fall into place!

If you didn't realize it already, I am completely OBSESSED with arts and crafts so any DIY project that I can lay my hands on, I will. I started crocheting less than a year ago and I absolutely adore making scarves! It started with circle looming and making beanies and then I wanted to learn how to make scarves because I am a true scarf person. If it wasn't so hot, I would wear my scarves year-round. So now, I've got a ton of unworn infinity scarves and cowls just sitting in a plastic container. My aunt and my mom really encourage me to sell them, but I honestly don't know if people would buy! And if they did, would I have enough time to completely restock again? I guess I could put a waiting list or something haha.

See you next post,
Chey

Currently listening to Scars by James Bay

I Made It!

Acceptance E-mail

Awesome news! So yesterday, I auditioned for the ENCORES Singing Competition put on by the SBCC International Student Ambassadors and they got back to me in less than 24 hours! I definitely was not expecting to be contacted so quickly, let alone make it past the audition round haha. A lot of people auditioned and I met a couple who were just so talented! I met two other auditionees, Rob and Liana, and they were absolutely so kind. Rob was from England and he plays guitar on State St. in his free time! He's planning on pursuing a career in music and he also told us that Nov. 1, he's going to be playing in the Angels Baseball Stadium which is absolutely crazy! Props to him, though because that is an amazing opportunity to have. :) Liana was from San Francisco and she's a UCSB alumni. Her hair was perfect, her outfit was perfect AND she had a great voice. I was thrilled to be able to meet other musicians haha. If you don't know already, I really enjoy putting up YouTube videos and would definitely love to collaborate with other local musicians because it gets old working by yourself.

Taken by Angelica Dass

Anyway, this weekend is going to consist of studying for my ETHS 101 class with Craig Cook! Definitely a class you must take if you plan on attending SBCC. It's about immigration studies in the U.S. and sometimes I'll see things on my Facebook Newsfeed and it will totally reflect what we talked about in class. This class makes you realize all of the little things that each minority group and the majority group experiences in the real world and changes your perspective on the lives of others. Anyway, definitely one of my favorite classes thus far and I've got a midterm on it next week, so I'll be busy with that! Have an amazing weekend and let me know if you want to see a cover posted on here someday. :)

See you next post,

Chey

Currently listening to Icarus by Bastille

Make It Home

If it doesn't feel like home, make it.

Singing Comp. Flyer

This past week, I've finally adapted to the college life. It's SO different from high school, in a good way. I'm going to make a little flashback Friday move (sorry, was that lame?) and let you know that during my senior year, I auditioned and made it into the final 10 for the Santa Barbara Teen Star competition! It was so much fun, I met so many wonderful people and had the chance to perform at the Granada. Any who, back to the present: I usually don't come to school on Friday's, but I did today and for a good reason too! I auditioned for the SBCC International Student Ambassador's singing contest. As you all know, I absolutely love singing and it plays a huge role in my life. Some people sit in the dark, wrapped in a blanket, eat ice cream and run a Netflix marathon when they're down or sad, but me? ...OKAY, well sometimes I sit in the dark, but I wrap myself up in music, sing songs and run karaoke marathons when I'm upset. If I didn't express how sad I felt when all of my friends left in my previous post, then maybe it would be a good idea to read it again, haha.

Chey's Fam @ Teen Star Red Carpet Event

Chey getting interviewed @ Teen Star Red Carpet Event

In high school, I was super involved and absolutely loved being in clubs, organizations and just busy busy busy. There was never a moment where I would be sitting down, bored because I had so much on my plate! It took my mind off of things and put me in a better mood. Then, I graduated. Graduation was so good, but at the same time, it was like I was letting go of everything I knew! I was the President of Asian Student Alliance, Photo Editor of Yearbook, Vice President of Usherettes, and I was a part of the Leadership class. All of these little worlds that made me "me", vanished. But then, I looked into what SBCC had to offer and, Lord help me, the options were overflowing. There are so many things that I hope to be a part of within my time here at SBCC because I love having things to do. Keeping busy is how I make foreign, weird places my home.

But yeah, I auditioned for the SBCC singing competition with Etta James' "At Last" and hopefully I did enough justice with that song to give me the chance to perform in the finals! If not, there's always a next time and I encourage you to try it out as well! I'd also like to take this little moment to give a shoutout to my voice teacher, Joyce Michaels, for providing me with all the tools that are necessary to be confident in myself and for being a stable role model throughout my childhood and even now.

Wish me luck!
See you next post,

Chey

Currently listening to I Knew This Would Be Love by Imaginary Future

Dealing With Separation

Being known as the greatest city college in the U.S., SBCC has gained so many students from different parts of the country and different parts of the world. Education is a huge part of each and every one of our lives and that's why some of us decide to pack up our things and try to get the best opportunities that we can. But when happens when homesickness settles in and you're missing your family, friends and just the comfort of your own home? You're in a foreign place, you've just learned what State Street is and frankly, you're just confused about what your purpose is for being here in Santa Barbara.

Chey & Friends @ Fiesta

Chey's Friend who is attending UCLA

I, on the other hand, spent the last 6 and a half years living here in Santa Barbara with my family. Attending Goleta Valley Junior High and Dos Pueblos High School, I made an insane amount of such dear friends, but the majority of them moved away to do the same thing that so many people come here for: get a better education. By mid-September, loneliness crept in and I was essentially homesick in my own home. Thoughts crossed my mind such as: "How am I going to make new friends now?" or "What are my weekends going to look like now?" Beginning in mid-August, my friends were slowly trickling out of Santa Barbara, which gave me the chance to adjust to them being gone. But even then, that didn't help with coping at all.

Chey & Friend: Last Hangout

Chey & Friend: Polaroid Pic

I went through the well-known 5 Stages of Grief:

1. Denial – I began to wonder what my real purpose here in Santa Barbara was as well. Why isn't anything making sense for me? Why couldn't I just get over the fact that my friends were all in different cities now?
2. Anger – Everyone's having so much fun where they are at and I'm stuck here doing absolutely nothing. It's worthless, a waste of my time, I just don't understand.
3. Bargaining – Then I thought, "Well, maybe this is the right choice, right? Even if we're all spread out, I'll get to see them during Winter Break. I mean, I've only got a couple months of school then a whole month of break to kill."
4. Depression – I think this stage is the one that hit me the hardest. I found myself missing a lot of the memories I spent with my closest friends, what we used to talk about and all of the good times. I never thought of my family, how lucky I was to be living in a city where so many people can only wish to visit, let alone live here. I was being completely and utterly selfish and fell into a sort of unexplained sadness. I drowned myself in isolation and used all types of distractions to relieve me of the thoughts that everyone else was moving on in their lives when I clearly didn't realize that I was moving on as well.
5. Acceptance – After all of the agonizing rush of emotions, I've finally come to a conclusion that the choices I made were the best choices for ME. Of course these individuals matter to me and of course I'm going to miss them. Although it's not the same as seeing them in person, technology has become so advanced that we can see each other via a cell phone or any device with a camera and microphone. In the long run, I'm going to appreciate the encouragement I got from my parents to attend the beautiful SBCC, I'll appreciate all of the friends that I've made here and most of all, I'll be appreciative of myself for being confident enough to stick with the choice that I have made. Live your life for you because in the end, you want to be proud of the decisions you make and the roads you take.

Don't let the idea of leaving home intimidate you. Opportunities are laid out right in front of you, you just have to be strong enough to grab them and run. There will ALWAYS be obstacles, but those are there to help you grow and learn to take advantage of them. We're all given an adventure and some time in our life, we're just going to have to live it so why not live it now?

See you next post,

Chey

Currently listening to Free Fallin' by John Mayer