Holy Geeze Moly

I got a new phone and said I'd hop back on to this social media train. 

So, here I am. Choo, choo. 

I found out that there's a Blogger app in the App Store on my iPhone and got a little too excited. It lead to me downloading the application and now, here I am, typing up this post (on my phone!) -- which just might be a little weird because I haven't done this blog thing in awhile. 

But, gosh darn it. I'm going to try! Second time is the charm, right? Besides, blogging is something I genuinely want to keep practicing. It's enjoyable, and frankly, I need to do it more often than I think. There's a certain amount of therapy in it for me, and I'm lucky enough to have even just a couple people to consider my thoughts. As always, no one needn't respond to my ramblings because it's the thought that counts. 

Speaking of thoughts, I think I want to show off my new Dragon Age toon. One good buddy of mine convinced me to buy it, and as it turns out, I really feel like I'm getting my money's worth. I've never written anything akin to a video game review before, so do your best to keep in mind that's not what I'm attempting to do! I'm just really in love with the game and inclined to share that with you lovely people. 

5 Ways to Win My Heart

There's probably more than five ways. 

But, 5 is the prompt, and that's what we're sticking to! I'm going to give full disclosure now -- "5 Ways to Win My Heart" is not to encourage people to try and actually win my heart. Aylin is not available for that!

Besides, she belongs to Chise~! Chuu!

This is more along the lines of "5 Ways to Make Me Like You Lots" or "5 Ways to Make Me Respect the Heck Out of You!". Even if a person has just one of the traits listed below, I'm happy to have met them. Every person, even if we're acquaintances, affects my life in some small way. If someone has all five, then they'll have an Aylin attached to them for the rest of their lives.

1. Be kind to other human beings. If you're the kind of person who treats every new face they meet with the same amount of respect, I have to say, you're golden. I'm a huge advocate against bullying or intolerance of any kind. If you're the same way, I like you by default.

2. An open mind. This may kind of tie in with my first point, but if you're the kind of person who is open and accepting of anything that is out of their own "norm", I salute you. I enjoy people who are willing to try new things, who aren't afraid of expanding their horizons. It makes for an adventurous life, and I like to have fun.

3. Have an incredible mind. I love beautiful brains, and I find beauty in intelligence and creativity. I like to think, so challenge me. Make me contemplate and have deep conversations with me. I'm an introvert, and by nature, I prefer provoking conversation as opposed to small talk.

4. Have a purpose. I don't care if you're not in school and I don't care if you don't have a job right now. We all get stuck in ruts, or a little lost along the way, but as long as you're actually trying at life and you have causes to believe in, you're going to get somewhere. Have drive and passion! Give effort. Nothing is more attractive than someone with ambitions.

5. Positivity. There's always something to be thankful for, and negativity is poisonous. Have a good attitude, regardless of the walk of life you come from. Attitude takes you places, and whether you have a good or a bad one makes a huge difference. I love people who are able to choose positivity in a situation where they can be negative. To me, a positive outlook on life is strength.

2014 - Better Late Than Never

Lately, I've been seeing a lot of bucket and resolution lists, despite it being already March. At first, I was like, hey! I need one of those! But, then I remembered that I'd already made one. Just after Christmas, I treated myself and bought an iPad mini. While waiting for my dozens of apps to download, I opened up the Notes and made a "2014 To-Do List". It was 15 bullet points and a decent number of them had included my ex.

Since then, things have changed.

Eventually, I'll get around to making some cliche or sappy post about how I became single and the revelations about life and independence I made -- all that jazz. For right now, though, you get a bucket list! Because how sucky would it be if I started off my blogging again by talking about being broken up with?!

Pretty darn, if you ask me.

Since there's no need to elaborate right this second, I want to share my revised, shortened "2014 To-Do List"! By no means is this a bucket list with everything I desire to accomplish in life. Oh no. This is just for 2014. I should be able to do all of this in a year, right?!

I Knew It!

Ya' see. This kind of stuff always happens with me.

I'll start up on a fun, side project, like this blog, and it completely gets left in the dust once real life takes over. I realize that it's not easy to blog, it requires a fine dedication to an audience. Which is a little hard to do, I must admit. It's nice having daily topics to write about, but by the time my day comes to an end, I've already prioritized with homework and my career. Or, my inner gamer is coaxing me toward Guild Wars 2.

I always give in to Guild Wars 2.
(Btw, if you play, message me please. This means we probably have a lot in common.)

But, this is a good opportunity to let some of you in on what it is I do during the day. Believe it or not, I'm fortunate enough to have a career that I thoroughly enjoy -- I help teach special education students in high school. You might be thinking, Aylin, this doesn't sound very glamorous at all! But, don't forget, Aylin is mama maid, this is what she was born to do. I still love graphic design and I love taking on commissions, but my highest calling is helping kids who need it. It's not a job for everyone, but it's the job for me. It's the one I want, the one I wake up happy to go to.

And, I hope a lot of you have that now or find it in the very near future.

A lot has happened since we last spoke, and my job has helped carry me through some rough patches. Maybe I'll get around to explaining them, but for now, this post is to just let you know that Aylin's back. Also, I love you. I'm sorry for disappearing.

Day 06

Day 06 - Write 30 interesting facts about yourself.

A short while back, I did something similar on my Facebook with 10 facts about myself. If you happened to see that post, I apologize in advance because I might repeat a couple "Aylin-need-to-knows"!

1. Poppies are my favorite flowers. 

2. I drink tea every single day. 

3. My first game console was a Playstation. 

4. Subsequently, my first video game was Final Fantasy VII. I was 8 years old. 

5. I like collecting coffee mugs, vases, decorative plates, and other random home goods. 

6. I wear a Star Wars t-shirt at least once a week. 

7. My biggest adventure was being shipped to Australia. I was told I'd be leaving on a Sunday, and by the Thursday that followed, I had a one way ticket to Sydney. 

8. I have an irrational fear of riding down escalators. 

9. But, I also really love roller coasters, bungee jumping, and para-sailing.

10. Despite not looking it, I'm Irish AND Filipino. 

11. I fall asleep during movies I've already seen really easily. 

12. The only food I know I dislike is olives. 

13. Cooking is relaxing to me. 

14. I dislocated my jaw after getting tackled in football for the first time. 

15. I've swam with sharks, dolphins and sea turtles (among many other types of fish). 

16. One year, I read over 200 books. 

17. Guilty Crown is my favorite anime. Sword Art Online is a close second. 

18. I've taken a lot of wisdom from the characters in my favorite video games and anime. 

19. I have boba at least three times a week. 

20. No matter how hard I try, I can't resist raspberry macaroons. 

21. I've taken a selfie with a kangaroo. 

22. I can't roll my 'r's'. 

23. Every winter, I realize that I'm not cut out for snow. It's too cold. 

24. By the time I was six years old, I could use chopsticks. 

25. Apparently, I'm kinda weird and I'm okay with that. 

26. I have 4 siblings and 16 cousins. Out of ALL of them, I'm the oldest. 

27. I'm really content with my life. 

28. I'm easy to make happy. 

29. If I'm going to go see a movie, I like arriving on time so I can watch the previews. 

30. When I'm by myself, I sing really loud. 

Day 05

Day 05 - A time you thought about ending your life.

I've had low points in my life. Everyone has. But, despite my trials, I can honestly say that I've never seriously considered ending it all. Often times, I've wondered why I'm here, or why I have to be here, but removing myself from this Earth was the last option to cross my mind. For me, it was all about running away. My flight reaction would begin to kick in when things got truly terrible. If I hit rock bottom, and sometimes I think I've done it more often than I'd like, my first desire is to just let go of everything and start over somewhere new.

The last time I thought about running away wasn't very long ago. Just a few weeks, actually. All of my stress just happened to collide at once, and when that happens, implosion is bound to occur. When I have problems, I need to solve them. I can't sit and whine about them and just hope that they'll solve themselves. I'm the kind of girl that needs to fix something when it breaks, or look for ways to be progressive. Being helpless is not my thing. But, every once in a while, I get too tired because I have too much on my plate, or I just can't fix everything that I want to. That's when I start to think, if I were to head out to the east coast, I wouldn't have to deal with any of this anymore. I could start a new life, and get it right this time around.

I'm lucky enough to be able to very quickly realize how silly that is. I know full well that running away doesn't actually solve my problems. They'll still exist, and my departure becomes a problem for multiple people. I'm not trying to sound conceited, I promise, but I know that I'm needed by others. Checking out of the life I've made is really unlike me. If I'm going to "run away", it's not going to be because I'm tired of life, it's going to be because I want to experience more of it.

There's always something or someone worth living for. Or, in my case, hanging around for. Be resilient. You're going to get hurt, it's going to suck, and it's going to happen more than once, but it's not the end of the road. Don't be defined by your pain, be defined by your strength and ability to overcome.

Day 04

Day 04 - Your thoughts on religion.

Since we're getting personal with each other here, you should know that I was raised as a Catholic. I was baptized as a baby, completed my communion during my adolescence, and then got confirmed when I was in high school. Up until my confirmation, I was involved in the church and all it had to offer. On Sundays, I went to mass, and throughout the week I'd attend various youth group nights and activities. But, none of it was truly for me or because I wanted to walk in the footsteps of God. It was for my family, most of whom are devoted Catholics themselves. Both my mother and my grandmother were very influential in my young, religious life, so every step I took in the church was prompted by them. Confirmation is a choice, and I chose it after a lot of arguing.

I went through all the procedures as gracefully as I could, but in high school, I learned that I didn't want to place myself under any denomination. I'm not going to worship because I felt forced to, and I'm not going to devote myself and live by a word that I don't fully believe in or agree with. Now, this doesn't go to say that I chastise any religion and think it's horrible. In fact, I feel the complete opposite. Just because I don't align myself with a particular set of beliefs, doesn't mean that I don't respect someone else's.

If my friends ask me to come to church with them, I'm going to be there to support them. If someone I'm riding in the car with wants to listen to The Fish, I'm down for that. I've gained a lot of wisdom from Buddhism and Hinduism.

Religion should promote and bring out the best in people. It shouldn't prompt us to harbor darkness or hate in our hearts toward anyone or anything. Religion shouldn't make you better than anyone, it should make you a better human being.