I'll Be Back

Walking at the Bluffs :)

Well it's that time of year that I must part from you until this next fall semester.

I know I say this in every other blog post, but I my appreciation for learning has stretched far beyond than I expected in less than a year. The 2015 - 2016 school year and inspired me to become a better student and individual, teaching me that there is purpose to everything we do. We come to school with a purpose to learn, expand our knowledge and meet more individuals.

Ending this year with a smile. Also, my hair has grown immensely!
I mean... compare it to my photo on the right!

Like I mentioned in my Dear Incoming Students post, I was extremely insecure in high school but aren't we all? There were so many things that I didn't like about myself and all of them were so petty. It was as small as not wanting to wear sneakers so I don't look like I'm a tomboy and making sure that when I go out shopping, I would wear the same things as my fellow peers. There was no individuality or quality to my life and it is something that I deeply regret. Following that, I looked forward to every single break, whether it be a three day weekend or a two week long vacation just because I hated being at school. Being surrounded by people who I thought were judging me constantly made me feel let down and I tried to hard, giving 110% percent when conversing with my friends or the popular kids at my school. I only had one teacher who inspired me and showed me that I could be more than I imagined. Mr. Dent, I don't think you'll be reading this, but if by chance you do, I thank you for being so motivating and having so much faith in me! Other teachers disappointed me, in a sense. Even after taking her class, which I enjoyed being in and trying hard in, this particular teacher didn't seem to really want to talk to me regarding my schoolwork or correcting my grades. There was always this sort of tension in her class and that led to me becoming less motivated and less interested in the subject.

Don't hold yourself back.

However, despite all of this heaviness and darkness, Santa Barbara City College has failed in making me feel anything like this. I am forever grateful for the professors that I have come across this year and the staff and students, as well. My first semester was probably the most extreme in the sense that I didn't know what to expect... I'm laughing at the thought of myself now because I remember waking up for the first day of school, putting on makeup and doing my hair thinking, "It's the first day of college. It's time to wake up and look like an adult, Cheyanne." Now after attending for a year, I can TRULY SAY... Nobody cares!  It's a time where we are all too busy worrying about ourselves and our futures. If anything, just try to encourage and make others laugh. Just a quick thanks to all of my professors, Doug Folsom, Craig Cook, Joe White, Peter Georgakis, Andrea Carnaghe, Bonnie Chavez and Maia Mook for inspiring me and keeping my year felicitous. I can honestly say, I've had the best professors on this campus. No bragging, just a couple of facts, haha.

This post is way too emotional, but I'm an emotional person, so what can I say? I love my blogging job and I love writing! I can't wait to be back. I love you all so much and thank you for keeping up with me this year! I had a blast and am looking forward to see what 2016 - 2017 will bring.

See you next post,

Chey

Currently listening to Felicity by Sungha Jung

Kuv Niam

The title translates to: My Mom. 

Happy Sunday, everyone.

Today was a really special day, Mother's Day! I always looked forward to days like these such as Father's Day and such because then I could work on arts and crafts or other fun projects!

Geez, well I guess this post will be all about my mom, right? This past weekend, we actually made a trip out to Fresno for my cousin, Ellie's, second birthday. Yes! The little baby that I always seem to post about is already two. My friend, Conor, is turning 20 soon and he'll be the first out of my friends to hit the second decade! How crazy is that? Yikes, better take advantage of the time I have now before responsibilities start to sink in...

Mama Yang

Anyway, I had prepared a gift for my mom in advance for Mother's Day. At my workplace, we sell these little books about the size of a palm and there are 50 pages. On these 50 pages, there are fill in the blank sentences and the books vary in theme. So there are books like "What I Love About Mom" or "What I Love About You" or "What I Love About Dad" and you get to choose whatever works for your situation so these are perfect gifts for Mother's Day, I thought! I decided to buy it and divided the 50 fill-in sentences in between myself and my two brothers. My younger brother, Nathan, filled in 17 and so did I and then my older brother filled in 16. We had filled out this book during the car ride to Fresno and just used different colored pens to differentiate who was who.

Finally, today rolls around and I am all ready... Or so I think. There was something missing from the gift and I had totally forgot. I had taken my Fujifilm instax camera, but it was in my purse, which I couldn't find... What happened was my aunt had cleaned up her place and put it in their office, which I never go in! So... It got left there and I didn't find my camera until later. But, when I did find it, I had my brothers pose so that I could get some photos taken of them as part of the present for my mom. I posed with myself pointing to my eye, Nathan posed with a heart (a really BAD heart, by the way), and Matt posed by pointing his finger directly into the camera lens... SO we ended up with "I Love You!" We presented my mom with the gift and she was so pleased. While reading the sentences and turning the pages, she was so happy, she couldn't keep a smile off of her face and she was very touched. Towards the end of the book, our photos finally popped out and she just smiled even more and we hugged her.

I always freak out about what I should get my mom every time Mother's Day rolls around, but I think simplicity is always the best answer. As long as it's a genuine gift and thought has been put into it, your mom will always be pleased. She loves you with or without a gift! Happy Mama's Day, Mama Yang! Love you so much!

See you next post,

Chey

Currently listening to Like My Mother Does by Lauren Alaina

Parting Ways

Blogging Team 2015-2016 (Minus Doug, Hannah and Leayam)

I am ever so grateful that I had the chance to work with such creative, talented students this past year. Honestly, I think being a blogger has kept me sane throughout my freshman year of college. After being so deprived of joining clubs since high school, the blogging program has given me confidence and has made SBCC a more comfortable and enjoyable place to be.

To my fellow bloggers, Fede, Angela, Alyssa, Ashley, Andrew, Doug, Hannah and Leayam — You are all extremely wonderful individuals and it's truly been a blessing to work alongside such a supportive team! Being around such a friendly group of people has provided me with the opportunities to laugh about weird, relatable things. I wish nothing but the best for you all and hope you have an exciting and fulfilling summer vacation before school kicks in once again! Thank you for inspiring and guiding me throughout this year.

To Emily and Melanie — I don't think I have met such a quirky, lovely and sweet pair of people before. Thanks to the both of you, I was able to express genuine smiles throughout our awkward silences in the meetings and to the strange and spontaneous lines that we happen to spill out. Also, receiving those uplifting e-mails in my inbox really brightened up my days. Thank you both so much for being so patient and caring towards us bloggers.

To Karen — It was such a pleasure meeting you this year. You have taught me what is it to be a successful student and inspired me with your kindness and generosity. I was so sad to hear the news that you would be retiring, but I also consider myself lucky for having the chance to have met such a wonderful person. Thank you for coming into my life and teaching me that kindness and laughter brings joy into everyone's lives.

As we wrapped up the year with the last blogger meeting today, I walked away knowing that I was able to be in the presence of such strong people and sitting alongside all of them today has also rebuilt my strength. We sat in a circle, enjoying slices of pizza, some with a side of ranch and others without. We shared our stories, our memories and our laughter. Within the span of one hour, green envelopes were handed out to every one of us by Melanie. In the spur of the moment, I asked, "Do you guys mind if we take a selfie for my blog?" Classic me. And so we did! It is a picture that I will treasure forever because it represents the beginning of my college career. Following that, we dispersed. I stayed behind a bit to hug Melanie and Emily and wish the both of them a great summer... Then, Fede, Angela and I walked out the door, said bye, waved and walked in opposite directions. I walked with Angela towards the door and also said good-bye to her once we walked through the door. And that was it!

Again, thank you all so much for such a wonderful experience. :)

See you next post,

Chey

Currently listening to New Year's Day by Pentatonix

Fall Registration Round 2

Post-Hunger Games Pt. 2

Can you say hectic?

I just finished registering for my classes for Fall of 2016 as of this morning. Again, heart beating so fast it could probably place first in a race... In preparation for the second Hunger Games, I made sure to set my alarm for 7:00 AM so I had time to shower and log into Pipeline, click on Student, then Registration and then Add or Drop classes! I never look forward to class registration, but the good news is that I was able to choose all of the classes that I wanted and everything is added and ready to go! Now we've just got to worry about payment haha.

Pre-Planned Schedule!

Goodness, if I have learned anything from past registrations, is that you must always pay attention to your registration date and time. When that day rolls around, get up and prepare yourself for the most exhilarating minute of your academic life. This is probably a given, but also make sure you plan what classes you're going to take and figure out a schedule that works out for you. Lucky for me, I get Fridays off again which is going to be so nice! I'm also taking my first night class which is pretty exciting and it's nice because it's once a week, at the end of my week. I'm really looking forward to Fall 2016 semester, if you couldn't tell.

Anyway, the biggest thing that you want to make sure of when you're planning out your semester schedule is to make sure that none of your classes overlap and that you have the correct Course Reference Numbers (CRN) for the classes you wish to take. The CRN is basically a five digit set of numbers that are usually listed in the same row of the class that you want to take. As you can see, I'm a little organization obsessed and I made a small weekly chart that makes sense to me and I just enjoy a lot of color so that explains the pink, purple, orange and blue that fills in the little boxes.

Exciting notifications give me life.

As for good news, remember the concert that I went to on Saturday? Well the guest performers, Us the Duo, followed me on Twitter AND liked my Instagram Photo AND commented on it. Am I a true fangirl for admitting to this "goal" yet? I woke up this morning to the notification about my Instagram photo and I can honestly say that I'm pretty satisfied with the turn of events today. It's been really successful. I went to school, attending Accounting, had a homemade lunch, went to work, came home, finished homework, studied and practiced a little guitar. I feel so accomplished and that's what I strive to feel every day! .... I also think that the cup of coffee that I consumed at 6:00 PM really helped. I pray that I'm not going to become your typical coffee-addicted college student, haha. I don't even like coffee! Not that much anyway. I think. I have no idea. Maybe my tastebuds are morphing and my taste is maturing. Haha.

See you next post,

Chey

Currently listening to No (Cover) by Pentatonix

Dear Incoming Students,

My very first textbooks!

Since we’re all about a week away from the end of the 2015 to 2016 school year, I thought it wouldn’t be more of an appropriate time to share what my first year of college has taught me. I have grown so much as a student and as an adult within the past year and to have fully let go of high school is such a weird and foreign feeling.

To incoming students where 2016-2017 will be your first year of college, don’t be afraid. It’s going to be a glorious experience for you and I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed my first year of college! Here are eight (because I’m 18…) things that I learned after going through my freshman year of college.

1. Like I mentioned before, I was absolutely terrified that college was going to be really similar to high school. As much as I loved my friends and the many memories made there, I was more insecure in my studies, relationships and personal life. However, college is nothing like that. You’re going to attending classes, doing work, attending group studies, hanging out with friends, seeing professors, participating in club activities… the options are actually endless in college. No one focuses on what you wear, how you do your makeup or your hair, or how well you do on a test. Everyone is college is following their own path and you will be too, so don’t let your insecurities hold you back!

2. Communicate with your professor if you don’t understand something during lecture. I promise you, this will be the key to success in your classes. This means making use of their office hours, e-mailing them, texting them or calling their office line. The majority of the professors here at SBCC are here to help you exceed and achieve your goals.

When I got my first planner :)

3. Transitioning into another school is definitely scary because you’ll be alone, but make sure to talk to your peers in class, form study groups and give yourself a chance to make new friends. Not only do you feel more secure in a class, but you’ll have friends that you can help and that can help you get through your class.

4. A lot of students that attend SBCC look forward to transferring out to a four year university. If this is your goal, be sure to have your major chosen as soon as you can and form an education plan by staying in touch with your counselor. My counselor, Christy Grant, is honestly the best thing that has happened to me at SBCC. She has helped me so much and has had a lot of patience with me when we formed my academic plan. For my fellow local HS grads, we have a designated counselor. You can look into that with the Academic Counseling Center. Here was an older post where I talked about the first meeting I attended where I met the designated counselors.

5. If you’re working while going to school, please try to balance your work and school schedule. Don’t burn yourself out! SBCC offers various job choices that are on campus and these are really great choices if your classes are spread out throughout the day. Also, be sure to save and spend your money wisely as classes, textbooks and school supplies can start to pile up and get expensive. You can read my post about how I’m trying to save here!

6. Aside from all of the academic chaos, you should make time for yourself and be sure to give yourself some downtime. You can explore the beauties of Santa Barbara, the beaches of Goleta or have some a get together with some friends at a quaint restaurant downtown. There’s so much to do while going to school in such a friendly city with beautiful scenery.

My brother & I on the first day of school 15-16.

7. I know you must have heard this a million times throughout your years of attending school, but do not procrastinate. Don’t put yourself through hours and hours of stressful, highly anxious situations! If you do a little bit every day, you’ll be all caught up by the time your assignment is due for submission.

8. And last but not least, don’t think of school as a chore, but more of an opportunity. There are so many students from all over the country and the world who are attending SBCC in order to receive a golden education. When you wake up to that blaring alarm that gives you a heart attack every morning, make sure you force yourself to get up out of that bed! After washing your face, look into that mirror and smile at yourself and go to class.

These are some of the key things that I have picked up throughout my freshman year of college. It has been a blessing to attend a school where the students care for one another and the professors are motivated by their students’ motivation. It was truly one of the best years of my academic life and I can’t recommend attending SBCC enough. As I begin my end of the year posts, I’ll also begin another count down!

See you next post,

Currently listening to 하늘쇼바라기 (Hopefully Sky) by 정은지 (Jeong Eun Ji)

Countdown: 10 Days

First Concert

Pentatonix @ the Bowl

I finally had the chance to attend my very first concert, you guys! I mean, I have been to other concerts before, but I went to see Alicia Keys in the 7th grade and quite honestly, I didn't know any of her songs... So I don't count it haha. I also went to VidCon last July and had the chance to see Kina Grannis, Sam Tsui and Kurt Hugo Schneider perform, but then again, I didn't pay for my tickets and it was a spontaneous event... SO anyway, this is the first concert I've paid for with my own money to go and see.

This past Saturday, I went to the Santa Barbara Bowl down on Milpas and had the chance to see Us the Duo and Pentatonix perform live. It was one of the most beautiful and uplifting performances I have ever witnessed in the entirety of my life. My friend Ekin and I started the day off by just heading downtown for some pizza at Persona and then went to the Bowl. We waited in line for about an hour or so, but lucky for us, the weather was pretty forgiving so we didn't have too horrible of a time.

The only problem is that once we got in, Ekin and I were unable to sit next to each other because we bought our tickets separately thinking that the General Admissions seating area was going to be a stand up area... So a first come, first serve kind of thing. I was assigned a seat in the third row and Ekin was somewhere in the way back, I think Row 13 or somewhere around there. When the first guest performer, AJ, appeared our seating row was totally empty and I told Ekin to sit beside me for the time being. Then as Us the Duo performed, the row was still empty and we both had the chance to sit together for about half of the concert.

Scott & Mitch

Skipping all of the jibber-jabber, Us the Duo is seriously one of my favorite couple artist duos to exist. Their names are Carissa and Michael Alvarado and they got married four years ago... And they're extremely talented. What else can I say? I was supposed to go to one of their intimate concerts last year in August before they got pretty big, but I just didn't have time and was preparing for college so being able to see them in my hometown, opening for an extremely talented a cappella group was a dream! Then, the moment we were all waiting for: Pentatonix makes their entrance and just kill it. I remember watching their YouTube videos and reading their interviews as they were starting to hit the big numbers through their fanbase. There was not one performance that I was disappointed with and the energy was booming throughout the entire venue. People of all ages were there and you could just tell with the sincerity in their eyes that they were performing with their all. I was blown away and have absolutely no regrets to seeing them for my first concert! A little while after they sang their encore song, Ekin and I walked up to the barricade and the crew started cleaning up. So.. we waited and waited (and begged and begged) to see if we could get our hands on a set list and one of the crew members gave in and ripped one off the stage and tossed it our way. Ekin got it and lucky for us, they didn't give any other ones out afterwards! Ekin was super nice about it and ended up giving the set list to me as a reminder of my first concert haha. (Thanks Eeks, you're seriously the best! :))

Set List (4/30/16)

Overall, I'm still so emotionally unstable after Saturday evening, but it was well worth the money and time I spent. I cannot wait to go to more concerts and travel and summer and do things. Agh! The options.

See you next post,

Chey

Currently listening to Misbehavin' by Pentatonix