Another popular brand called the Mayfair Group, which has 425k followers on Instagram and is known for their inspirational graphic design based Instagram and Tik Tok posts, is also pushing a lot of content that revolves around the concept of manifestation. Most of their manifestation content is based on having the intention to become the best version of yourself, which I think is positively adding to the conversation. It is very interesting that as a creative PR agency their content revolves around trends and they are receiving engagement on their posts about manifestation because people are genuinely interested in the topic. 
​I believe the concept of manifestation is trending and is being talked about so much right now is because of the current state of the world. Right now COVID-19 has caused people to feel like they aren’t in control of what is going on around them and they have become attracted to the idea of the universe taking the wheel. Although my reasoning behind why manifestation is trending sounds a bit pessimistic, there is something comforting in the thought that the universe will send what is yours your way. 

Good luck with your own manifestations and I hope they come true! ​
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I’ve learned in quarantine that eating breakfast every day is a good way to start the day off on the right foot. I saw this video on Tik Tok where this girl gave a recipe for a “flat tummy tea” that you are supposed to drink every morning before eating to increase the rate of your metabolism and to prevent bloating. All that goes into the drink is a glass of warm water, juice from half of a lemon, 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar, and 1 teaspoon of cinnamon. It has a very tart taste so I always drink it with a straw so it can go down faster. After I finish that, I love making myself some iced coffee. At school, I would always get a cold-brewed iced coffee from my local cafe (Cafe Nero I miss you so much) and when quarantine started, that part of my routine got messed up. Although, Trader Joe’s helped solve this problem because I found out that they sell cold brew canned coffee. I love this product because it makes me feel like I have some kind of normality back in my life and it is really easy to just pour over ice. ​

When I was applying to schools, I told my parents and my college advisor that I refused to go to any school that had cold weather. At that point in my life, I was dreaming about attending a UC school like UCSB or UCSD. I wanted to experience living my college years by the beach so badly. 

Well, by the end of the application process and when I was down to choosing between my top two schools (the University of Colorado Boulder and Boston University) I could not have been further from my original dream. To be honest, I got flat out rejected from every UC school I applied to. 

Before I write any further into this blog post, I want to establish that I am in love with attending school in Boston. After attending 1.25 semesters physically there, I know that I 100% made the right choice and that I ended up where I needed to be. 

So one may ask, what is it like to experience America’s other coast as a college student? Well, I’m glad you asked.

It’s cold, like bone-chilling cold, especially from January to March. Sometimes, it rains sideways because of the chilling wind that is so strong that it could knock you down. There are certain places around BU’s campus (like in between Rich Hall and the west campus dining hall) that create wind tunnels. If you have made it this far in your life without knowing or experiencing a wind tunnel, consider yourself lucky. 

When I moved into my freshman dorm in January,  (I took a gap semester) the temperature was in the single digits. When I started realizing what I actually got myself into regarding Boston’s weather situation, I internally panicked. I remember the first few weeks before I met some good friends that eventually ended up becoming my future sophomore year roommates, I considered transferring and applying to UCSB because I thought that being in the warmth would make my college experience better.

I was so wrong! I learned after my first semester at BU that it's not the weather that makes your college experience great, it's about the individuals you meet along the way and the quality of your education.

Ironically, a lot of people I immediately bonded with at BU were California or West Coast kids too. We actually first bonded over being so cold some nights when we were walking through Allston to the frat houses in our skimpy going out clothes. 

My closest friends at school are all from New York State. It was so fun getting to know them and as we started spending all of our free time together, I started picking up some of their “East Coast slang.” If you ever hear me say “It’s so brick out” that means I’m freezing. “I’m so tight right now” means something is really bugging me and I can’t stop using the adjective “hella” to emphasize whatever I’m trying to communicate. 

In high school in California, electronic music dominated our AUX cords. Music festivals were/ are our idea of fun. But on the East Coast, you will rarely hear EDM music being played at functions. I’ve come to learn that the East Coast college kids love rap. Sometimes when I try and introduce my college friends, who are originally from the East Coast, to any of my favorite electronic songs, they look at me so strangely and just don’t get it. I save those songs for my West Coast friends. 

Wherever you go to school, you’ll probably pick up new habits and tendencies, but it humors me to think about the little things I do now that are a result of my East Coast experience. 

If you are wondering about the social scene in Boston or at a school on the East Coast where the winters are cold, start imagining your average college party taking place in a basement. Since it's too cold for outdoor parties from November to March, the most fun Friday nights will be taking place under a house. This was such a new concept to me when I first got to BU because basements aren’t really a big thing in California. 

Whenever a warmish day (50° weather and up) comes along, and they do come, don't worry, everyone in the city is just in a happy and good mood. This past semester there was one Monday in February where it was in the high 50s/ low 60s and everyone was out and about doing homework outside by the BU beach. I was wearing a dress to class for the first time that semester and the nice weather gave my friends and me an excuse to darty on a Monday. When days like that do come along, and you haven’t seen the sun for a few days on end, they are sweeter and more enjoyable because you know what it's like for it to be cold and cloudy. 

Someone who goes to school somewhere where it's warm may argue that they are having a better experience because every day is like that one warm day in February. But I disagree because having nice weather all the time takes away one’s ability to really appreciate a nice day when they are given one. Also, before I attended school at BU, I would wear my ski jacket out at night when it was in the 60s. Now, I look back and laugh at myself for that because when it starts pushing 60° I want to be wearing the least amount of clothes possible. 

I feel like going to college on the East Coast after growing up in Southern California my whole life was one of the most challenging things I have gotten myself into. Although, I proudly like to think that because I moved across the country to experience something new, I am physically and mentally tougher and I don’t get as cold as easily! Also, being around people from the East Coast has given me an interesting perspective and I can’t wait to stay on this side of the country after college is over for a little while before I head back to California. 

Don’t be scared of the East Coast’s weather, you get used to it. 

​I’ve lost track of how many weeks in we are in deep of the stay at home order. I’ve been bored in the house and I’m in the house bored (if you watch Tik Tok you definitely know what that means.) Although, instead of focusing on everything I am not and can not be doing, I want to dedicate this blog post towards everything I have been doing, and you can too, at home in quarantine. 
One thing that I have been doing to keep myself busy is journaling. If you are one of my close friends, probably the only people who actually read this blog, you know that I’ve been keeping a journal since the end of high school. It essentially serves the purpose as a place where I can quite literally dump everything and anything on my mind. I do my best to keep it positive but sometimes getting something off of my chest and onto paper is very therapeutic and helps with my chronic issue of overthinking. Also, I do this thing that I came up with called “flashbulb memories,” which is essentially a short story that I write in my journal. Any moment that I experience that makes me think, I want to remember this feeling for the rest of my life, I try and write down as soon as I can with all the little details that made the experience so sweet. I do this because I don’t want to forget what it feels like to be 19 and each “flashbulb memory” that I document is a little receipt of a moment that might have been gone forever. 

Since we are living through a major historical event right now, anything we write down in quarantine is documentation of ourselves living through what one day is going to be in the textbooks. Not that it is really the same thing, but I sometimes wonder if Anne Frank ever thought her journal would be good enough to be published as a major piece of historical evidence for the historical event she lived through.  It’s interesting to read back on my past journal entries that I wrote at the beginning of quarantine versus now. If I had a favorite entry from the chapter of my journal called “quarantine” it would be one that I wrote in week 4 of the stay at home order, 

My goal is to be able to ollie, which is probably the most basic skating trick in the game, by the end of quarantine. Even though no one is physically here to show me how to do what I’m trying to learn, so many of my guy friends have been very quick to swipe up on anything I post about my skateboarding journey and give me their opinions and tips to make my ollie better. Thanks, guys. Also, shout out Mike for FaceTiming me and doing the ollie over and over again so I could see how it is properly done. This was a few weeks ago and at this point in quarantine, I’m able to skate around my town when running errands. 

The other day I had to go pick something up from across town, and my sister was using the car, so I decided to take my skateboard to run my errand. This was probably one of the best days I have had all of quarantine. When I was on my board I passed a group of band kids practicing in a front yard while sitting 6 ft apart; it brought a smile to my face. Then when I was riding down another street, I passed some kids and a young girl, who was probably in middle school, riding a skateboard in her front yard. We immediately locked eyes and said what’s up and I knew right away that that girl was going to grow up to be a really cool girl. I had to walk my board up the hill so I could get to where I was trying to go, not going to lie it was really hot and it tired me out. Although when I was heading home, I was able to ride down a hill with the perfect incline where I wasn’t going too fast but was still picking up a decent amount of speed so I could cruise. The feeling of riding down that hill was so thrilling and was the first time I really felt free in quarantine. I’m hoping to continue this hobby of mine so I can start riding down Comm Ave. to class when we return to school in September. So many times before quarantine was a thing, I wished I would’ve been able to ride to class so I couldn’t be late. 

Anyways, quarantine is a perfect time to pick up any hobbies you have been interested in but never had the time to really get into until now. Carpe Diem my friends! By the way, that was a reference to “Dead Poets Society” an amazing movie with Robert Williams that I really recommend and think you should watch in quarantine. :) If anyone actually reads these posts, I would love to hear what my reader (s) have been doing to keep themselves busy during quarantine in the comments! ​

One thing that I’ve learned about myself during quarantine is that I absolutely love Tik Tok. Hear me out on this one; I think that this specific app’s algorithm is unlike any others. It has led me into countless hours of endless scrolling of content that I actually am so interested in.

Some people who might not use Tik Tok all the time may think that it is just a corner of the internet where their friends and teenage girls who wear crop tops make cringey dances, but after using the app more and more, its algorithm picks up on what you view and like the most. Your “for you page” on the app shows you content that it thinks you may like.

So the other night, I was scrolling through my for you page and came across this really dope girl who is in her twenties and is a freelance photographer. This girl is sharing her secrets that she has learned from the industry and how she personally plans/ executes her own photoshoots. That Tuesday morning, at 1:30 A.M., I felt like I struck gold.

So, with all this time I have on my hands, I decided to do exactly what this girl does when she plans out her shoots.

First, I started brainstorming interesting locations for where I could take pictures at during quarantine. My mind immediately went to the poppy fields in SoCal because right now they are in bloom and are so so beautiful. From that point, I started bookmarking every single photo I saw that was taken at the poppy fields that came up in my Instagram feed of my friends and influencers who also had the same idea.

Second, I picked who I wanted my models to be. Because we are in quarantine, my sisters came to mind first, and then I asked my friend Emily to drive out there on her own (because social distancing is on all of our minds these days).
Then, I hit up Pinterest and pinned every single photo I could find that had anything to do with a photoshoot in a flower field. One tip to this process that I found very helpful when narrowing my search, which I learned from the Tik Tok video, is that if you type “flower field photoshoot editorial”, the keyword being “editorial” in the search bar, Pinterest shows you photographs that are aesthetically pleasing that have been published and featured in established magazines. 

Once I pinned all my inspiration for all aspects of the shoot (poses, make-up, hair, outfit ideas, etc...), I got on Adobe Spark and started making mood boards. Shout out to BU for providing their students with free access to all Adobe Products. This is how they turned out…
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This time of year is especially exciting for high school seniors, as they are making big decisions about where they are going to be attending college. I remember when I was making my decision between Boston University and the University of Colorado Boulder; I was so torn, and the only way I was able to finally make up my mind required me to physically visit both campuses. The moment I decided to choose BU was when I was sitting in a lecture hall, listening to the dean of CGS  talk about the benefits of the CGS January London program. If I never made the effort to attend Admitted Students Day, I would have probably ended up going to school in Colorado.
    The problem many high school seniors may be experiencing now is the same feeling of being torn between their top two schools yet being unable to visit in-person. To assist those who may be feeling this way, I’ve come up with a list of 5 reasons why I think you should choose Boston University.

1. BU’s campus is directly in the heart of Boston. If you are attracted to attending a school in a big city, BU offers that experience while still having an established campus that is all along Comm Ave. Compared to other schools in Boston and other big cities like New York, BU’s campus is collectively all along the same street instead of having buildings sporadically located​ throughout a part of the city.
2. BU has over 300 programs of study; so whatever you are interested in, you are bound to find a specialized major program that works around fulfilling your educational goals.
3. Whenever I tell someone that I go to BU, I feel a sense of pride because BU is recognized for their prestigious academics, as we rank as #40 amongst all colleges in the United States. BU is a very challenging school and receiving a degree from this university will push you in ways you have never been pushed before. As one rises to the challenge and takes on the opportunities that BU’s academics have to offer, they grow as a person and become more enriched and educated about the world around them.
4. Being admitted to BU requires each student to have proved in high school that they have what it takes to be successful in college. Once you get to BU, you will find yourself surrounded by people who share the same goals as you and have similar ambitions to do well. The environment at this school has pushed me to be the best version of myself. 
5. After graduating from BU, your valuable time, money, and effort that you invested in your degree will prove itself worthy when you can land your dream job. Employers report that BU is ranked #18 amongst US universities for employability. 

I hope this list helps anyone who is looking for guidance. Wherever you may end up attending school, you will make the right decision at the end of the day. Go Terriers!

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When I started this blog, my goal was to create a platform that required me to go out and explore Boston, write about my experiences, and share recommendations with my readers. Although, the COVID-19 pandemic has made that goal impossible; the rest of my semester will be taking place online from a desk in my parents’ house. I’m sure you can see the problem with continuing to write a blog that’s based on its original topic. So, I have planned to use this platform as a way to document my experience during this era of social distancing and to share ways with readers on how to get through it. 

Currently, everyone I know is working from home and staying home to “flatten the curve.”  Even though staying home isn’t the most ideal thing to do (especially after you’ve been doing it for 2 weeks and have a case of cabin fever) it’s important to keep following these social distancing guidelines because an actual fever is a lot worse and very dangerous to those around you. 

I’ve come to find that it’s so easy to get caught up in the negative aspects of the situation, so having a positive mindset during this time has been very beneficial to my mental health. For instance, the other day I kept overthinking the fact that my sophomore year of college got cut short and found myself saying to my family while we were eating dinner, “I have lost my will to live.” The moment after that came out of my mouth I realized how overly dramatic that sounded and that I didn’t want to actually die, but I needed to reevaluate my purpose and expectations during this season of my life called “the Coronavirus.” By viewing this time as an opportunity for self-growth instead of that one time when that really bad pandemic robbed me of part of my college experience, I have started to feel better about being home and not in Boston.

Shifting your perspective is key to getting through this time. Whenever negative thoughts of boredom enter my horizon, I choose to think about this extra time as an opportunity to get to the things that I wanted to do before but never got to-do because I just didn’t have the time. Some of these things that have been on my to do list for a while now include: watching really good movies, drawing, taking online writing workshop classes instructed by one of my favorite poets (Rupi Kaur), experimenting with new recipes, listening to podcasts about self-love, running 3 miles every other day…. the list goes on. 

Also, whenever I find myself feeling bummed out about what would be currently happening if patient zero never ate that stupid bat, I try to channel my negative thoughts into optimistic ones. To do this, I think about what life is going to be like post corona. I try to visualize the first weekend when everyone can go out and see their friends after being at home for so long. I think about the first concert, museum trip, darty, music festival, my first day at my summer internship, beach days with friends, and everything and anything that requires me to leave my house and have contact with the outside world. I realize that it might be a bit of a wait before any of these things are possible again, but by adopting this mindset I have something to look forward to and I am completely hyped for when the time for these things to happen again comes. 

My point is, we have been given the gift of time and you can either use this time to improve yourself and try something new, or you can wallow in your own self-pity and be miserable the entire time. I chose the first option and hope you do too.

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