Simplicity at its Finest

It's still not clicking for me that it's already Week 11. This semester is just passing by too quickly and the fun has only started—and no, I'm not talking about midterms, homework and projects!

En route to Fresno

Fall brings with it the holidays and that means celebration! This past weekend, I went to Fresno to visit my family. We arrived to my aunt and uncle's house on Friday night at 7:30 and had dinner, chatted and went to bed. But, on Saturday, we attended ClovisFest in the morning, hoping to see Hot Air Balloons take off. But... we were late, by an hour. We got to the festival at 8:00 in the morning, only to find out that the balloons lifted off at 7:00 in the morning! It was a total bummer, but the entire festival was really enjoyable. There was an entire block of vendors, booths, and food trucks for visitors to check out. Our family wasn't too hungry, so we walked the block and looked at all of the different products people were selling. I was so hyped because downtown Clovis was SO fall. Leaves on trees were red and orange, fallen leaves laid on the rain-soaked concrete and people were dressed up in boots and coats!

Leaves+Boots+Bricks = Prime Fall Photo Op

After ClovisFest, we headed back over the my aunt & uncle's house to clean up a bit and then drove to my grandparent's house. It was the first time going back there since my cousin, Tyler, left to Marine bootcamp. Not only was the house more empty than it's ever felt, but the whole atmosphere seemed to have shifted. Nonetheless, my aunt and cousins from Visalia and London came over and made it a full house! Later that evening, we got the kids ready to attend Zoo Boo at the Fresno Zoo. They dressed up as a duck, a ghost and a bunny. Like last year, I attended with my baby cousins and took them around to different booths handing out candy and fun stuff throughout the zoo. We did lots of walking, had burgers for dinner and walked around some more. Finally, we ended the night at my aunt & uncle's place with a reflection discussion with our family members and enjoyed candy!

Sunday, today, I woke up to the sound of pouring rain and it took me a minute to realize what was happening. I was so excited, but obviously waking up at 7AM after staying up all night didn't allow me to express that... For breakfast, we enjoyed biscuits and gravy (made by yours truly with help of my mom and cousin) and then just cleaned up and packed up our car. I had the grand opportunity of driving the full four hours back home, but I was lucky enough to be able to drive in such wonderful weather. The rain wasn't terribly strong, but the sky was so beautiful and the clouds were gorgeous and I don't think I've ever appreciated nature as much as I have on the drive to and from Fresno this past weekend.

Now, I'm home safe and sound! Ready to take on my week. :)

See you next post,

Chey

Currently listening to Rewind by Wingtip (feat. Sophie Strauss)

My POV: Making Art

Bloggers Cameron, Elisa, Matt & I

For those of you who don't know, I was a guest performer for 2020: A Year Without War's event, "Make Art, Not War" and I, alongside other guest performers (including Cameron!!!), had the chance to perform at this venue! It was a super laid back vibe and we spent a lot of time socializing with one another. My parents (thanks Ma & Pa for always supporting me) also came to watch me, but showed up at 7:30 right before I went onstage.

Chey & Mama and Papa Yang

After I was introduced onto the stage, I was extremely nervous because I had had a sore throat all week and I was about to perform for about twenty minutes. I got settled in on stage, stood behind the mic and its stand, and started singing Can't Help Falling in Love by Elvis Presley (but Haley Reinhart's rendition). It was definitely a laid back song to start out with. Feeling a little more confident, I sang God Bless the Broken Road, Selah's rendition. That song had a bit more runs and a wider range to it. At this point, the nerves had really settled, thanks to my wonderful, wonderful audience. My throat was hurting, but I didn't even pay attention to the pain because I was having such a good time on stage. Then, I kicked the mood up a little bit with Bright by Echosmith. Then, I threw it back a little with a good 'ole Disney Movie track from The Hannah Montana movie, haha. I sang The Climb by Miley Cyrus to give a little bit of inspiration for the night. Returned to a little more modern sound and sang a soulful Almost is Never Enough by Nathan Sykes and Ariana Grande. To end the night with a little more old soul and classic, I poured my heart out with At Last by Etta James. At Last takes me back so far and I am so glad I chose to perform it again Wednesday night. As the lights were hitting me and the audience clapped, I gave my thanks to both the audience and 2020 and exited the stage.

View from SOhO Patio

As I was walking back to my table, I was stopped by so many friends and NEW friends, complimenting my performance and expressing their surprise when they found out I sing. It was honestly the most surreal night I've experienced in a long time... Speaking of friends, we had 4/5 bloggers at the event on Wednesday night and we shared a ton of laughs and took a ton of pictures. I love my team! ;) I also met this sweet, sweet girl named Mey who reminded me why the arts are so important and how quickly they can bring new friends together. So many hugs, smiles and conversation was exchanged to bring an exciting night. My parents, who were SO out of their element, still had a really great time and to see their smiles when I was walking back made me that much more proud that night.

Elisa, Cameron, Elliot & I

Going into this, I really thought I was just going to be background noise to enjoy a dinner to. I chose songs that I thought would be a slight head-turner, but not enough to really distract people from a conversation. I was so surprised when people were actually listening, whooing, and dancing. It was such a fun night. Thank you so much, 2020, for providing me with my first 20 minute set and Mimmi for suggesting & inviting me to be a part of such a wonderful event.

See you next post,

Chey

Currently listening to home by gnash feat. Johnny Yukon

Wearing Old Shoes

Normally, a person wouldn't want to put on a pair of old shoes and walk around in them, but I'm not normal.

Recently, my friend Mimmi contacted me and asked if I was going to be available on the 26th of October and I was! She told me that she had a friend who is a part of 2020: A Year Without War who needs more performers for the event that they would be hosting that evening. I was so surprised that Mimmi had even thought of me because I wouldn't have even thought of me!

It's been so long since I've been on a proper stage that the feeling of performing has become so foreign. When I was in high school, I'd be on stage all the time. Whether it be for a talent show, wedding, or a gathering, I would always be singing in front of people. Now, I'd be lucky if I can get into a competition. It sounds a lot more disappointing that it actually is, I promise. Time has just passed by so quickly that I don't have enough hours in my day to find places to perform and by the time I know it, I'm so wiped out! This semester is slowly, but surely wearing me down more than I expected it to and that's definitely impacted my dedication for singing. I'm actually quite nervous, haha. The largest venue I have ever performed at was the Granada theatre, and it will be my first time performing at SOhO next week.


I didn't realize how much I miss the feeling of performing and the excitement that it brings. Aside from being around such wonderful people, I love the nervousness sitting in my stomach and the first breath that I take once I'm in front of a crowd. Anyway, if you haven't heard of 2020: A Year Without War, they are an SBCC founded organization that strives for change to create a more hopeful and warless world by the year 2020. Elisa is one of the leaders putting on this event as well! The organization is putting on an event called, Make Art, Not War, on Wednesday, October 26th at 6:30pm at SOhO. Get tickets to this event ($10) and see other artists and performers take over the stage! Cameron will also be there, making art with his guitar. :)

See you next post,

Chey

Currently listening to Skylines by Glades

Californian Fall

Getting Lost in the Corn Maze!

In case you didn't know, fall is my absolute FAVORITE season. And it's not because of pumpkin spice lattes or exclusive summer clothing sales. I just love everything that comes with fall. For example, fall fashion is to die for. Although Santa Barbara doesn't get too cold of weather or too hot, there are some mornings where I feel like, "Hey, I could use a scarf today!" Aside from that, I just enjoy the colors, festivities like Halloween and Thanksgiving and basically everything pumpkin... If you're on a roll and want to stalk my blog, these are some really awesome fall-loving posts that I wrote in 2015:

1. You Know What Fall Means
2. Catching Up
3. Wrapping Up November

Clearly, my obsession with fall is not enough.

Unfortunately, my friends Sam and Brenna moved out of town to attend college and I won't be able to have a traditional pumpkin party with my lovely gals, but that won't stop me from making a trip to Trader Joes, purchasing pumpkin flavored goodies and indulging in them.

On the topic of pumpkins, I took my younger twin cousins to the pumpkin patch at Lane Farms! We went around 5:30 pm on Wednesday evening and had a wonderful time. There are corn mazes, tractor rides, plenty of fun foods at the cashier stand and the pumpkin fields were so cute! There were also animals there like goats, a donkey, turkeys, and a hog. I obviously took plenty of pictures. Throughout the corn maze, I made repeated stops just to snap a couple of photos of my cousins and one of them told me I was too slow! In no way am I a photographer, but I really did feel like one that night. Afterwards, they marched around the pumpkin patch some more and then we grabbed dinner at In-N-Out. 

It was such a successful trip!

Now... if the weather could just cooperate, I would definitely feel the full effect of autumn!
See you next post,

Chey

Currently listening to The Woods by Hollow Coves

TAG! You're It!

I think one of the things that we dread the most while we're high school students (aside from SATs and AP Tests) are applying for college during our senior year. I know for myself, I had such a difficult time prioritizing my college applications and it was mostly difficult because I had absolutely no idea where I wanted to go. I mainly applied to the schools my friends applied to, random privates in California and a couple of state schools. I basically wasted a lot of money because I thought I knew what I was doing.

SBCC has been a wonderful buffer for me to figure out what I want to do in my life. So many times I have change my mind on what I want my future to look like, but with the help of my counselor, friends and my experiences in various classes, I'd like to say I kind of have it figured out. Anyway, as I'm a second-year SBCC student looking to transfer, before I knew it, it was already time to apply for TAG (Transfer Admission Guarantee)! Applications were open from Sept. 1 to Sept. 30 and luckily, no essay is required, just a couple of questions and fill-in boxes. I decided to TAG to UCSB, but I would really REALLY love to get out of Santa Barbara. As much as I love it here, I just need some change.

Find out more about the Transfer Academy HERE

So... in addition to tagging to UCSB, I'm planning on applying to a couple of other state schools in California. One of the greatest things about SBCC are the counselors, professors and staff who are so passionate about seeing you succeed. I am shooting for a Associate Degree for Transfer, which I didn't really know about until I talked to my counselor, Christy Grant. She has definitely been a helping hand throughout my whole educational experience and as hard as my classes are, she's helped me figure out a solid transfer plan.

SO... My biggest transfer tips are:

1. Keep in touch with your counselor.
2. Build relationships and connections with as many people as you can!
3. PAY ATTENTION TO DEADLINES.

Good luck to all who are looking to transfer Fall of 2017! You're not alone in this struggle. :)

See you next post,

Chey

Currently listening to Love More Worry Less by Bipolar Sunshine