Showing posts with label quotes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label quotes. Show all posts

Saturday, January 21, 2012

New Year's Resolutions 2012

QOTD: What is the longest amount of time you have spent writing a single blog post?

I hope all of you are having a wonderful weekend so far! First I wanted to start out with some news that is circulating around the blogosphere: 

Mia Hayson is requesting guest bloggers over at Literary Jam and Toast, one of the funniest and best writing blogs ever. This is a great way to meet some new bliggity friends, share your unique skills and knowledge with others, and meet the lovely Mia! Over at Confessions of a Bookaholic, there's a giveaway for all you To Kill a Mockingbird lovers! Finally, a good friend of mine has started her adventures as a journalist at The Constant Interview . Caitlin Byrd is an amazing writer and has always been an inspirational role model to me. Check it out--you will learn so much from her. 

In fact, I found this on her blog: 

Let's all try to keep this in mind as January gradually draws to a close and we start to embrace the second month of 2012. It's strange...I don't even feel like 2011 is over yet. I don't think it has hit me. Perhaps I'm still caught up in everything that happened last year--all the things that changed who I am and all the things I did or didn't do. 

Here's a look at what helped define 2011 for me: 

Year in Review
  • Became a reporter for my college newspaper
  • Became social media savvy (joined Twitter and tumblr!)
  • Chose my career pathway (clinical psychology)
  • Completed my first social media & marketing internship
  • My turtles grew up into full-size (ish) adults! Yay!
  • Got rid of acne with regular skincare
  • Reached 160 blog followers, created TRA's Facebook fan page and hosted my first blogfest (and now there are email subscriptions! Look right.)
  • Bought my very first Moleskine journal
  • Became aware of current news and world events
  • Grew more comfortable with speaking in crowds (aka: I no longer get weak or shaky)
Now that I am reflecting over my old New Year's resolutions, I think I did pretty well. I got a lot done. It was a good year for me. A lot changed, but so did I. A small part of me misses where I was (figuratively) at the beginning of 2011, but there is no doubt that I am where I should be right now. 

Do you feel like you accomplished the things you set out to do at the beginning of 2011? If not, are you planning to continue that journey this year, or are you starting fresh?

Speaking of goals and such things, these are my NEW aims for 2012:


I'm kind of a sucker for organization and planning tools, so I always love New Year's. There's something about the idea of starting a new year that makes one feel inspired all over again...as if this year is going to be "it." The big one when everything that's supposed to happen happens. There's promise and excitement and possibility. 

As I browse through this new list, I find myself nodding my head multiple times and thinking, Yes, this is what I want to accomplish in 2012. I've been adhering to most of these so far, though it's going slowly. I know some of these will be tough--especially #8 since I'm a slow reader--but even if I don't accomplish all of these goals at least I will have tried my best. That's what counts, right?

My favorite part of goal-planning is the actual process of completing them. It's fun and actually feels fulfilling. And once we've reached the finish line, we can begin a new race and start all over again. 

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Monday, April 25, 2011

30-Day Challenge 13: An Un-Hoppy Easter Break


Question of the Day: Share your tips on studying and doing your best on tests with us students who are in the smack middle of examination week!


Day 13: A letter to someone who has hurt you recently.
I'm back. *sigh* As the saying goes, all good things must come to an end. So true. So true.

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Sunday, January 23, 2011

Top 10 Songs Blogfest

Question of the Day: What motivates you to blog?

Yes, yes, another blogfest! :) I promise you, the next post I write won't be a blogfest entry haha. This one is hosted by Alex J. Cavanaugh, and we are supposed to list our top ten musical hits. :)

Between my piano, my Pandora radio, and YouTube, it's safe to say that I'm a total lover of music. I like everything from rock to classical to pop, so I have a very broad range of tastes. Hope you enjoy!

In no particular order...here are my current favorites:

1) Firework by Katy Perry -- this is such a happy, energetic, and inspirational song! It makes me want to dance, sing, scream, and run all at the same time. Listening to this song helps me believe in myself.


2) Marry You by Bruno Mars--I would love to have this song hosted at my wedding! The lyrics are so sweet, and it will make you feel young and in love. :3 The "Glee" version of this song is even better in my opinion.


3) Love Story Meets Viva La Vida by Jon Schmidt -- this guy has INCREDIBLE talent. I have never heard the keys of a piano or the strings of a cello plucked away so gracefully and with such passion. I listen to this all the time, I can never get tired of it! It is truly amazing how a beautiful song like this one with no lyrics can sound more like a poem than cleverest rhyme. Credit is given to Love Story by Taylor Swift and Viva La Vida by Coldplay.


4) Fireflies by Owl City -- Being a person who often can't go to sleep and is stimulated by any sort of movement or flicker of light, this song is right up my alley. "Everything is never as it seems....as I fall asleep." The video rocks.


5) Thunder by Boys Like Girls--what I like so much about this song is how it takes me back to the days of when my friends and I were young and carefree. It reminds me of the days when we were perfecting MySpace profiles instead of resumes, when homework was done to get incentives from parents instead of good grades (and thus a career), when love mattered more than financial compatibility. Ignorance is bliss when you are a kid.


6) Piano Man by Billy Joel--Billy Joel is the man. His rich, authentic voice is almost as seductive as chocolate. I love how lyrics make this song seem almost like a bedtime story.


7) Hanging by a Moment by Lifehouse -- This song brings back a lot of memories, as I danced to it at the first real "dance" that I went to back in middle school. It reminds me of how it feels when you first fall in love.


8) Fur Elise by Ludwig van Beethoven -- Years have gone by and I've learned many, many songs on the piano (I've been playing since age six, for those of you who don't know). Even when I forgot how to play all the other tunes from memory, I never forgot this one...so it pretty much feels like I've grown up constantly playing and performing this song. Beethoven and I are pretty tight.


9) 100 Years by Five for Fighting -- even though the lyrics make a lot of people really sad and nostalgic and all sorts of mixed up feelings, I think it's good for us. It reminds us that every moment counts. We choose how we live and we need to make the most of it because we only have a 100 years [or so] to live.


10) Boulevard of Broken Dreams by Green Day -- There are just some days when my mood status is: absolutely alone and depressed. That's when I listen to this song. It doesn't exactly make me feel, well, not alone anymore...but the lyrics accurately depict how I currently feel and, to a degree, I suppose that gives me some sort of comfort.


This was a fabulous blogfest...thank you to AJC for hosting it! Forgive me if my comments come around a bit late. My Economics homework is calling to me and telling me my opportunity cost of commenting today is less time to get a good grade on my homework--and thus, a good grade in the class! Nevertheless, I shall get around to all the entries this week. :)

Hope you enjoyed!!

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Saturday, January 1, 2011

The Best of The Blog in 2010 + Rate & Review TRA Poll

Question of the Day: What are you doing to celebrate New Year's Day? Did you count down and watch the ball drop on television?

I've compiled a list of the blog's ten best entries in the year 2010! Feel free to share your own favorite blog post of TRA in comments below!

From oldest to newest....



Rate & Review TRA Poll

After blogging for a year, I still can't get enough of it! I am slowly beginning to expand this blog by adding more features and links that I hope you will find beneficial and helpful for you.

Here's your chance to let me know how I'm doing! It would be wonderful if you could take a few minutes to participate in this poll. It would definitely help me out and let me see what I can add in future posts to make TRA blog for the better.


  • Photography and visual elements
  • more about TRA, who she is, and personal entries
  • writing advice and literary works
  • tutorials and how-to posts
  • bits and pieces of randomness

In addition, please let me know:

1) What would you like to see less of, if anything?
2) Are there any particular topics (recent current events, debatable politics, gardening, the writing process, etc.) you'd like me to write about in future posts?
3) How do you like the layout? Should I change it? If so, how?
4) Any specific resources, links, or non-literary things (like polls and quizzes) you'd like me to add?
5) Any suggestions or overall comments

I would truly appreciate your feedback! The poll will be up for a month so you can have a while to make your decision. Thanks so much for being such a loyal follower/reader! Happy New Year!

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Friday, December 31, 2010

Happy New Year's! :: Eye Candy Blogfest




Only two more hours until the final countdown to the new year of 2011! Regardless of where you are celebrating your New Year's, I hope your last few moments of 2010 are memorable and special. Now for my entry for the Eye Candy Blogfest, which is hosted by Vicki Rocho at her blog, Rambles & Randomness. The idea is to post my single favorite picture. I couldn't literally choose which photo was my favorite, so I just decided to post ONE of them. :P Here is mine:

This was taken in Massachusetts. I love it because of the different reflections of the buildings...ah, how I love skyscrapers and city life! I own all rights to this photo.

Well, here we go! As a Facebook friend said, "happy birthday, time!" Hope you all have a fantastic New Year's. =D

Here is one of my favorite songs and YouTube videos. It is a little sad, of course, but it definitely puts things in perspective. When I listen to this song, I am reminded of the importance in living life to the fullest, never taking anything for granted, and appreciating every moment I have. :)

*holds up a virtual glass of grape juice* Here's to a new decade full of happiness!
Here's to a new beginning.




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Thursday, December 9, 2010

Reading Between the Lines


Question of the Day: What song inspires you? Why? Is it the rhythm, the lyrics, or something else special about it?
I'd like you to me Mr. Duke. He's a nice guy....been hanging out with me for a good while now. He lets me tell him anything I want. Very good secret keeper, I must say.


Mr. Duke is my Quotes Book. He's filled with a bunch of treasures and jewels in the form of words. Quotes, beliefs, inside jokes, famous sayings by famous people, song lyrics, Facebook statuses, you name it .

Whenever I'm lonely or just need a pick-me-up of inspiration, I turn to Mr. Duke. Because he's just that cool. :)


Today I'd like to share little tidbits of entertainment, inspiration, and insight that I've picked up over the past couple of years. I figured this was appropriate especially since 2010 is slowly saying farewell to us. It's nice going back and seeing what I've written and added to Mr. Duke. =)

(drag the image to your URL bar to make it bigger)

I hope you enjoy and that you find something to laugh over, smile about, and ultimately think of throughout the day. :) Which line is your favorite?

~TRA

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Thursday, November 18, 2010

~*Potter Parade: Mad Lib Contest - How Dumbledore REALLY Died*~

What time is it? POTTER TIME! There is...

15 Hours Left Until Harry Potter #7 Comes Out


WOOHOO! SOOO EXCITED!

Okay...I have a confession. I won't be seeing HP&DH until next Friday. =( I know, it's a bummer. But it'll be during Thanksgiving break AAAND I'm seeing it with my best friend AAAND by then we will have a better chance of getting tickets. You can be sure that I'll be doing a review on the movie after I see it!

So basically...ALL over Facebook a good 40% of my social networking pals have Harry Potter-related statuses. Here are just a few really entertaining ones...

"All this hype about Harry Potter is pretty contagious..."
"Harry Friggin' Potter!"
"....getting my HP on"
"HARRY POTTER HARRY POTTER HARRY POTTER HARRY POTTER"
"Sunshine, daisies, butter mellow, turn this stupid fat rat yellow"

My favorite is "Harry Friggin Potter!" It reminds me of the song "It's Harry Freaking Potter" in A Very Potter Musical. If you haven't see that, you totally should check it out on YouTube! Sooo funny and immediately catches your attention. :D (P.S. The new guy in Glee, Blaine, was Harry Potter in the musical!)

As promised, I propose a Mad Lib Contest! It's called: How Dumbledore REALLY Died. It's nothing big, just a little fun something as part of our Harry Potter celebration. No prizes or anything like that, unfortunately, because I am a poor college student with no job or money except her meal plan. =( Maybe once I get a job and approach 100 followers, I can have a humongous blogfest or something. :D

So...here are the instructions! In your comments, please include the following words in a list labeled 1 through 10 (this must be in order):

1) Present tense verb
2) A type of food (either Muggle or magical)
3) An adjective starting with D
4) The name of a body part
5) A Harry Potter character
6) A magical creature
7) Something you love
8) A Number
9) A spell or charm
10) Noun

I have already made up a paragraph with blanks. It's your job to fill them in with nothing but the title ("How Dumbledore REALLY Died") to give you a clue. So start commenting! On Sunday, I will choose the funniest and most random list from one of the comments and post the winner and the completed Mad Lib entry with blanks filled in.

Be funny, creative, and totally outrageous! =) ANYBODY CAN ENTER. Also...if you mention my "Mad Lib Contest: How Dumbledore REALLY Died" in a blog post I will love you for life. :3

HAPPY FREAKING HARRY POTTER DAY!!!!

~TRA

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Tuesday, November 16, 2010

~*Potter Parade: Harry Potter News, Links + Extra Trinkets*~

Question of the Day: If you could be any Magical Creature (ex: thestral, unicorn, Doxy, hippogriff, etc.), what would you want to be and why?

"They stuff people's heads down the toilet the first day at Stonewall. Want to come upstairs and practice?" --Dudley Dursley
"No thanks. The poor toilet's never had anything as horrible as your head down it -- it might be sick." --Harry Potter, Book 1

3 Days Until Harry Potter #7 Part 1

Because I will be a hosting my Harry Potter contest tomorrow, I thought I'd make today's post rather "chill" and laid-back.

First, major news! The cast of Harry Potter got together in London last Thursday on November 11 for their premiere of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1. They look absolutely stunning! Emma Watson's pixie 'do still shocks me...I don't think I can ever get over it after all those years of seeing her "bush" Hermione-Grangery mane. Ohh, without a doubt, our beloved HP characters are truly growing up...
In addition, I don't know if some of you already know this or not, but Daniel Radcliffe's first post-Harry-Potter movie will be The Woman in Black, which is coming out (hopefully) in 2011. This film is apparently a ghost story, and Daniel stars as one of the main characters, a young lawyer named Arthur Kipps who encounters a woman in spirit form. Hmm, not exactly what I had imagined for Radcliffe, but this is definitely going to be interesting! Here's a sneak peek at what Daniel looks like in this upcoming film project...
Totally un-Harry-Potter-like, I know...

I have a confession. I like to bookmark pages...and half of my Bookmarks deal with Harry Potter, Hogwarts, and/or The Wizarding World. I'd like to share with you all some of the goodies that I have come across in the past:
  • DanRadcliffe.com : A fan site dedicated to the legendary actor who played Harry Potter. Includes photos, quotes, fun facts, news in the media, and even Daniel's mailing address (ooh la la!).
  • MuggleNet.com : Here, you'll find basically EVERYTHING Harry Potter related. Just a few things that it offers include: origin of names, song parodies, real recipes of magical foods, and fan art. This is totally THE go-to site for Harry Potter fans.
  • The Harry Potter Lexicon : I have lost count as to how many times I have referred to this amazing encyclopedia while writing HP fanfiction. I don't even have anything to say except that It. Knows. Everything.
  • J.K. Rowling's Official Site : If it weren't for Rowling, Harry Potter wouldn't exist. And if Harry Potter hadn't existed, we'd have nothing to live for, right? This is probably one of the coolest author websites I've ever visited. You can choose to amongst several different languages, which is really handy for international readers. You can read her biography, read up on the latest Rowling news, and, if you're curious and nosy enough, you'll find a load of handy links and secrets hidden about!
  • Fire and Ice Archive : This website is dedicated to one of the most popular HP fanfiction couples...Draco and Ginny! You'll find countless one-shots, long stories, fluffy pieces, and epic adventures starring D&G.
  • Hogwarts School : Love RPG (role-playing games)? This site is totally for you. Finally, you can not only read and write about Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry, you can BE A PART OF IT.
Last, but not least, Cheryl Clarke's Oh To Be a Muse blog is having a lovely holiday giveaway HERE. Two winners will be chosen by the deadline, which is December 7th. Hurry and enter today! You must be a follower to be eligible.

~TRA

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Sunday, November 14, 2010

~*Potter Parade: 10 Most Epic "Small" Events in Harry Potter*~

Question of the Day: Fred or George?

"NEVER-INSULT-ALBUS-DUMBLEDORE-IN-FRONT-OF-ME!"
-Rubeus Hagrid, Book 1


5 Days Until Harry Potter #7 Part 1


***Spoiler Alert: You may not want to read this if you haven't read HP but are planning to or are currently in the process of reading the series

Hello! I have compiled a short list of the 10 most epic "small" events in Harry Potter. I mean, we all know what the most epic "big" events were...Harry meeting Sirius Black for the first time, the Yule Ball, Harry discovering that he's a wizard, Dumbledore's downfall, Harry's unsuccessful date with Cho, etc. etc...

But what about the little things? The things that may not mean the most to us, but still did nothing but enrich Harry's experiences at a wizard?

1) Fred & George feed Dudley Dursley a Ton Tongue Toffee, Book 4. I don't think poor Dudder's tongue was ever the same after that.

2) Harry and Ron drink Polyjuice Potion to spy on the Slytherins, Book 2. Crabbe's toenails hair, anyone?

3) Harry opens a Chocolate Frog for the first time, Book 1. This is the first time Harry sees what Albus Dumbledore looks like. And, of course, we see The Headmaster scratching his nose...

4) We see Snape and Mrs. Malfoy making The Unbreakable Vow, Book Six. I think this is one of the few times in which we encounter a very important event that is not through the eyes of Harry Potter. It is also one of the few times that Rowling ditches restricted 3rd person and gives us the opportunity to know something that even our hero does not.

5) Sirius sends Harry his Firebolt broomstick and it gets ooh'ed and aah'ed, Book 3. You gotta admit, that broomstick is pretty darn sexy...

6) Harry and Ron overhear Hagrid and Madame Maxime having a not-so-private conversation at the Yule Ball, Book 4. To jog your memory, we discover at this point why Hagrid is so respectably large! We also find out about Hagrid's background and past.

7) Hermione meets Grawp, and Grawp meets Hermione, Book 5. "Grawp's about sixteen feet tall, enjoys ripping up twenty-foot pine trees, and knows me," she snorted, "as Hermy."

8) Harry indirectly helps free Dobby from Lucius Malfoy's grasp, Book 2. YAY FOR DOBBY AND HIS SOCK!

9) Hedwig dies, Book 7. Here lies Hedwig Potter, the most faithful, loyal, and magical snowy owl that ever walked on this earth. The world shall forever mourn for the poor dear. We salute you, and thank you for everything, dear Hedwig.

10) Hermione punches Draco Malfoy, SMACK!!, Book 3. Who knew Hermy was so bad-ass?

What do you think? Do you have any events to add to the list?

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