ANIMALISTIC part 2: Why we love celebs

Why do we like celebs so much? Let's start small and work our way up. (CLAIRE I ACCEPT YOUR CHALLENGE)

First and most arguably the easiest identified reason is that celebs are entertaining. They make us laugh, cry, and they keep us engaged. They intrigue us, inspire us, and keep us wanting more of them. Simple

Celebrities are also unrealistically sexy. Good-looking. We think they're cute. Oddly enough we can be attracted to someone without ever meeting them or seeing them in person. We then can get to know them and understand their personality without them ever knowing who we are. We can fall for them as a person or fall for their performance, either way, once we figure out that we like them (or how in love with them we are) we'll daydream about them and think about them, because after all we do "know" them.

If only I could meet them, we'd be such good friends. 

Some of us pursue a celeb because of a crush we may have on them, others because they admire that particular person's work, some because, well, the bottom line is that celebs (or their works) are, simply put, appealing.













Celebs are always under the eyes of a critic. They can be publicly reported for anything. They are praised or brought-down by the world because they either excel or screw up. Either way, celebs are a hot topic for what they do.

Celebs have status. They are well-known, thus it is fun to know who they are along with everyone else. A celebrity's job is attract as many eyes toward them as possible. They've got to look good and do good to "be" good. The public's opinion matters to them. They are fun to talk about.

The way so-and-so portrayed that character? What an excellent performance. His new single is so fun to dance to. That guy is so talented, he's got a good voice. Her performance on America's got Talent just blew me away! How entertaining! 

But there is also a backwards method of gaining attention that is just as (if not more) effective than the latter. And that is being the bad guy. If you are bad enough, you'll be talked about enough. This could be the playboy with a million girls on him or the girl who's known for sleeping around. It is cool to be bad, to break boundaries, to be a rebel, to appeal to the crowd sexually. It sets a statement, and it brings forth the unfortunate general fact that girls like the bad boys and that guys like the bad girls. 

The other side to that is being a total jerk. They screw up so we don't have to.

What she did was so scandalous! I can't believe that guy did that to his wife. Last night's performance was terrible, he ought to be kicked off the show. She got so drunk at that party she was dancing in the streets in her lingerie. How embarrassing!

Celebrities also happen to also be very influential. Why? Well, because they are the action figures in the media industry. There will always be the writers, directors, coordinators, etc., but there has to be someone there to stage it, to sing it, to bring it. Those who bring it are the ones who are seen. The ones who are seen are the ones who are followed. The ones who are followed then get paid. The ones who are paid have status. The ones who have status are living the dream. We are always encouraged to chase our dreams, could chasing a celebrity be linked to that? Think about it. We are fueled by envy in a way.

We also look up to celebs because of our own selfish desires to be sexy and have all the money and be loved by others. We want what they have. It keeps us wondering, wishing...

She's so pretty, I wish I looked like her. He's got all the ladies, I wish more girls liked me. What is it they have that I do not?

They are also perfect for influencing the government. When they support a certain cause, politician, or organization, and they gain much praise from the public for it, it is easy to gather up the votes, support, and money needed to get things launched. (Money makes the world go round, eh? eh?)

It is exceedingly rare nowadays for one person to NOT have thoughts cross their mind about being famous. Whether we necessarily want fame or not, we desire it. It is in our nature to be well respected and looked up at for who we are. With all this influencing, money-making, selfish-thought provoking, and makeup applying going on, you gotta think, what an effective and successful system America has constructed! It subtly digs into our innermost desires and lets out what we want to see happen! In the meantime we 'normal' everyday folk go about doing everyday jobs. Making everyday life what it is. Those in the high life hear from us and are lifted up for it. So what does this all mean for believers?



King Solomon in the Bible had it all, man. He was probably the guy who experienced the high life better than anyone else ever in HISTORY. But even he knew that none of it could satisfy. And he had it ALL. Or, so he thought. Our hearts constantly desire fulfillment and satisfaction through it. Worldly satisfactions therefore seem like fulfillment. It's not. It is like "chasing wind". When we don't know the Lord, the world is literally all we've got. We can't even stretch our arms around the world! It just doesn't work for us like salt replacing sugar in a cake. I believe chasing celebrities has to do with that.

PS

Personally I continually pray for celebrities that I like (or dislike) because well, I love em. Not the way the world does, but the way Jesus does. They are people, just like you and me, and instead of bashing and mindlessly praising, let's love em. The way God would. That's what celebrities don't get a lot of: love. We can do that, can't we? Let's lose the fluff and get lovin'.

Oh and , btw, I love you too :) *MUAH*

All the World's a Stage...

Hey there my orange octopi!

Today I am not necessarily bringing you joyful news or anything. I am typing you guys something that causes my heart to grow very heavy and, honestly, I hope this makes your heart heavy too. It's very important.

Have you noticed that mass media is pretty much the least accurate source of information out there and yet it is the one thing that most people believe and put their trust in? Who is responsible for such a widespread of such a false yet compellingly believable revolution? Is it the writers of the scripts? The directors of the shows? The megalopolis empires of companies who web everything in the media together? Perhaps. All the world is a stage, but what it really needs is the players. The ones who make media possible are the ones who are placed in front for everyone to see: like the pawns in the game of chess.

Something interesting came to my mind lately, and that is the subject of actors. We cheer for them, have crushes on them, enjoy seeing them, praise them, and most of all we love them. Or more accurately put, we like what it is they do. It is incredibly easy to assume as either an actor or a "normal" person that actors are somehow placed above us. In other words, they somehow have this sense of power, a higher position than the everyday man, simply because their popularity is unrealistically high or because they are a part of something very large. One thing is for certain though, these guys are very normal people.

There are some actors who know that they aren't any more special than anyone else and they do get to live "normal" lives; in a home with their families, doing everyday things that we do. There are those however who are so miserably sucked into their jobs and terrorized by the public that not only do their minds very suddenly become corrupt and crooked, but their hearts as well. They become victims of the world's desires and expectations, and it drains them dry, leaving behind a shell  that once held who they really were.

If you've ever really looked at the lives of many actors you should see that it's really quite sad. I am requesting that you take time to pray for a particular actor or actress. It is more serious and scary than we realize, and they deserve just as much real love from others just as much as we do. We will most likely never meet them or have a legitimate conversation with them, but the best thing you could do for them or for anyone is to pray and to love them in the way that fans simply can't. Thanks you guys. Remember that no matter what they've done, those are our brothers and sisters out there. Please don't shun them, pray for them instead.


Ever heard this song? Yep, it's about Britney Spears. I know she's not an actor, but all the stuff I typed applies to the singers, too. Thank you all very much.

I would like to dedicate this post 

in loving memory of Katy Hudson (better known as Katy Perry) and Miley Ray Cyrus. 

They have turned away from the God they once loved

and have drowned in the ways of man. As a believer

I know that God does not love them any less than before, and that 

no scheme of man can claim that they cannot be saved.

I really love you both dearly! 

-Bethany

The Pointless Post

Ever noticed how many sequels of sequels of sequels of sequels

 of sequels of sequels of movies are being made out there??? It's getting really ridiculous... 

 Hiya my iPhone chargers!!! I am typing on my iPod touch. My iPod touch's name is Chaz and it is really old for an iPod touch. It's got some cracks on the screen but it still runs (fairly) beautifully. I just downloaded a JPop song. WOO. I hate photo bucket.

Something in my dresser made a shuffling sound. Really it did, just now! It went like *sffclunk!* Just like that. Maybe a zombie knocked one of my socks over to the side of the drawer with no socks so it went *sffclunk!* Well, no that couldn't have happened because a zombie probably wouldn't have fit in there....

Maybe it's a really tiny zombie, or a zombie mouse. Why did I pick a zombie of all things??? My room is really messy and I need to clean it up or it will become a NYC for zombie mice. Which would be kind of cool but really gross. Or more likely it will become a town for scorpions, which I, like other Texans, have.

My desk has too much junk on it. The only things that aren't junk is my art easel and this painting I made out of eyeshadow and lip gloss and eyeliner. It turned out much better than I thought, actually! It's actually very nice. My desk has this really awesome speaker set that was made for laptops and is really tiny but I use them for my iPod and they have a nice and loud clear bass-y sound!! Good deal for $22 on Amazon. I love amazon. You can pretty much find anything on there.

I also have two empty Dr. Pepper cans sitting there. I kept em cuz one of em has Thor on it and the other has the Hulk on it. Thor is obviously more awesome. Well, hmmm.... Which would win in a fight?? The Hulk or Thor??? I know they fight in the Avengers movie but really neither of them actually "win".


I should stop biting my nails.









I have exactly 30 comic books on my bookshelf. I didn't realize I had so many....

Wondering what's up with this post? Look at the title. I do not need to explain anything.

Your Dream Man

Hmmmm.... which do I prefer....

Blondes [ ] or Brunettes [x]

Left Brained [x] or Right Brained [ ]



Oh! Hey there! Um...Hi!

I was just thinking of the kinda guys I generally prefer. Nothing out of the ordinary or anything.... Heheh.

                  For those of you women who aren't already married, do you have a list written up of all the characteristics that your dream man has? I remember reading an article in this Christian teen magazine encouraging girls to make a strict list of wonderful characteristics that their man should have. That way they can follow that list as a guide and only choose good men.  A typical teen girl might write:

       1. He must be totally hot (no ugly guys for me)

       2. He should be athletic

       3. Totally masculine. And tall. Well, taller than me. But not too tall. Duh.

       4. Ripped and rich

       5. Look like Taylor Lautner

Yes, I have seen people put down #5 all the time. Really. Or something along those lines..... However, a typical Christian girl might put down:

       1. He needs to be a Christian (this is the most important step!!! That's why it's on top!!!)

       2. He needs to be totally hot (no ugly guys for me)

       3. He must to be a good father

       4.  He should be supportive and loving
     
       5.  He has to be able to listen to me talk about things that I am interested in and at least act like he's interested, too


Yes, I have seen people put down #5 all the time. Really.


A good Christian girl (yes, a GOOD Christian.... not all Christians are necessarily "good") might put down:

       1. My dream guy needs to be a GOOD solid Christian, not one of them phonies

       2. I want him to be a good father for all the kids we will be having (when we're married. Duh.)

       3. I want him to know that divorce is never gonna be an option

       4. He needs to be loving, caring, compassionate, merciful, generous, forgiving, kind, strong, protecting, supporting, joyful, and finally faithful to me but even more faithful to God.

       5. And he needs to have a good amount of money. Just sayin'. Hey! If we have a big family I don't want to have financial problems!

Yes, I have seen people put down #5 all the time. Really.


                  Notice how the Christian lists were a little less focused on outward characteristics and more on inward characteristics? That is indeed important. I made a list one time during high school. I wasn't necessarily interested in dating at the time, but I wrote one up anyway just cuz it felt like a good idea. I figured one day it would come in handy for when I did want to start dating. And now I don't know where that list even is.... Way to go, Beth...

                  But I don't really care actually. That's because a year or so later I read out of another print Christian teen source that lists aren't a good idea! This author guy, Justin Lookadoo, said that he felt that lists only applied to the male that the female is searching for, not the actual female writing the list. In other words, he feels that when girls search for their perfect guy they tend to forget that all have fallen short of the glory of God, and even if the guy has all the characteristics on her list, he's still going to stumble and fall and struggle. After all, he's only human. Besides that, Lookadoo also stated that if girls need to make their lists, they need to have those lists apply to themselves.

                  For example, if you want your man to be compassionate and loving, you need to make sure that that is something you aim to be! Everyone has heard the phrase, opposites attract, but when it comes to godly men and women, their similarities in godly characteristics are what they truly become attracted to. In other words, if you are truly a woman of God, than a man who is truly a man of God will be attracted to that. The godly individuals really know what they are looking for, and they have the eyes to tell the difference between a follower and a phony, beyond their lovely outward appearances. This is when that lame old cliche "what matters most is what's on the inside" REALLY makes sense. Godliness sure is hot stuff, isn't it???

                   Tell ya what, next time you refer to your list or even write one, write the list for yourself. I am certainly not against lists, but the problem is, sometimes we set our hopes and sights too far into our "perfect" future spouses instead of our awesome years of being single, when we are only dedicated to God. Also, we sometimes rely too much on our own preferences that we forget that God knows us waaaaaay more than we know ourselves. So let God choose your man for you. Trust in Him; He's got one in mind for you already, just let Him do His thing. Devote yourself to God fully, and you'll be the hot mama you were born to be, whether God leads you to a life of marriage or singularity. :)

               

Up In Da Club With an Unintentional Worship Song

Hey there my Converse shoes!


Have you ever heard a secular song on the radio and thought it sounded like it was talking about God? I recently heard a song by David Guetta and Usher that sounds SO much like a surrender to God's love! The song is called, "Without You" and it's had huge hype and radio play, ya know, it being one of those generic pop/club songs, but the lyrics are definitely somethin' else.

Of course, neither Usher nor David Guetta are necessarily considered good "role models", and of course the song was written to whine about how Usher misses his girl desperately and needs her back. But let's set that aside and say that they have officially created a worship song (unintentionally). Here's what I mean:

The song opens up with Usher admitting his faults: 

"I can't win, I can't reign
I will never win this game
Without you, without you.
I am lost, I am vain,
I will never be the same
Without you, without you."

The Bible teaches that without God, we are nothing. In the "game" that life is, we "can't win" on our own. We may have talents and God-given gifts, but without God (who is also love) we are "lost" and we "will never be the same". We may also have power to rule over a nation, but compared to God, our "reign" is nothing. The heart of a follower will always be more powerful than the heart of a king.

-Jesus replied, "What is impossible for man is possible with God". Luke 18:27 NIV

- If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 1 Corinthians 13:2 NIV

Usher also admits that he is "vain", which is true of everyone, we all deal with vanity one way or another. God is perfect, and He is the only thing worth lifting up. Without God we fail to recognize our own roles as humans and we tend to put ourselves higher than we should be. It's just as Ecclesiastes constantly repeats: "vanity of vanities, everything is vanity".

And as a fun little note, the lines "I am lost...without you" is almost like a wink at the chorus to the worship song, "Breathe" by Kathryn Scott ("And I, I'm desperate for you... And I, I'm lost without you").  

For such a simply worded verse there's a lot of meat in there. You can get a lot more out of that than I had written. But anyway, moving onward! Here are the most powerful lyrics of the song:

Pre chorus 1:

"I won't run, I won't fly
I will never make it by
Without you, without you.
I can't rest, I can't fight
All I need is you and I,

Without you, without you." 

Pre chorus 2:

"I won't soar, I won't climb
If you're not here, I'm paralyzed! 
Without you, without you.
I can't look, I'm so blind 
I lost my heart, I lost my mind! 
Without you, without you."

Here's what the B-I-B-L-E has got with the lyrics "I won't run, I won't fly.... I won't soar":

-"...but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40:31

-"You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself." Exodus 19:4

The Lord is a deliverer, and sends his help like a soaring eagle. Those who believe will also fly with those God-sent wings. Without God, you ain't got no wings to fly! 

With "I'm paralyzed":

-"Some men brought to him a paralyzed man, lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the man, “Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.”" Matthew 9:2

Without the forgiveness and love of God and the faith of those men, the paralyzed man would've stayed paralyzed for the rest of his life! 

With "I'm so blind... I lost my mind":

-The LORD will afflict you with madness, blindness and confusion of mind. Deuteronomy 28:28

That wasn't very cheery, but we cannot forget that God is a God of both love and justice. He does indeed have the power to take anything away from people, including their sight and sanity. However, the Gospels have recorded the healing miracles Jesus made on people who were blind, demon possessed, insane, etc. Without God's healing, where would they be? Where would we be?

And finally, "I lost my heart":

-"Scorn has broken my heart  and has left me helpless;
I looked for sympathy, but there was none,
    for comforters, but I found none....But as for me, afflicted and in pain—

    may your salvation, God, protect me." Psalm 69 verses 20 and 29

In this book, David writes of how his broken heart isn't something that he can fix on his own, the feelings of pain alone hold him down. He searched for comfort through others, but was unsuccessful. Later he begs for God to protect him through his time of need, and that was all it took for his heart to be found healed. God also asks of us our hearts, when we give that to him, we gain a heart out of it! When we refuse, we lose our hearts.  

I dunno about you, but that's pretty crazy how coincidental that is. Maybe God was being a little bit sneaky.... You how in my previous post about the Avengers I mentioned how in media sometimes you can find "golden nuggets" and signs of God's love? With this song, it didn't take me long to recognize that these signs were present, but when I went Bible surfing to find deeper meanings in the song, it's incredible what can come out it! Remember, there are reasons behind everything and symbols are everywhere, so always guard your heart. And when it comes to media and your everyday choices, remember:

"Chew the meat and spit out the bones"

                                      -John Boyle

And to send you off, here is David Guetta's official "Without You" song and lyrics video (complete with colorful artsy visuals!!!).

Do' da da go' hv i!!!!!! Keep on dancing! You know you want to!

Fangirls: The Cool, the Dumb, and the Ugly

Howdy partners! Good to be here with Y'ALL!

Being a fan of something can be SO cool. It's fun to really get into something and to choose your favorite characters and to gain inspiration out of it. It's even cooler when you have a friend or a bunch of friends who are into the same things as you, and exciting conversations can be made from that as you anxiously anticipate the next upcoming part of the series. Sometimes it's also really awesome to see the fun ideas and creativity that can be brought forth from fans!

Sometimes.


When you are a fan of something, say that really cute anime emo guy that never talks to anyone but is still frickin cute because he just is, you can basically take the way you view that character and "change" him around, or rather, re-design his characteristics to match your own personal preference.

For example, this emo boy just so happens to not be interested in dating any girls currently, and he probably feels that he just doesn't have time for them, being busy sulking around and thinking about how much life sucks and all. Sadly that's just the way the cartoonist created him. But the way his slanted, narrow eyes and shaggy black hair are drawn is just far too much for your brain to remove from its memory and your heart does a little jump every time he speaks in that deep, smooth voice (yeah you, fangirl, you know what I'm talking about). Even though he's fictional, you just somehow can't stop thinking about him. So what do you do???

You might decide to make your own OC (original character), draw her up and then pair her up with emo kid. In your imagination you are now somehow a part of the story and have full control over all the other character's emotions and decisions, especially the character you have a crush on. You two could have some sort of smoking romance and absolutely nothing could go wrong or get in the way of your "original" angst-y love story. Hey, it's a whole new world now! For you, anything goes. Until the next episode of that anime emo-kid is a part of comes on TV in English with a new character - a female who is destined to be his girlfriend. *facepalm*

Another typical thing that fans do that you could also do is save every single picture of him off Google and DeviantArt onto your computer. On YouTube you can make a million AMVs dedicated to that character and even make be the first to claim the username, emo_kidluver4ever. You can go to every underground nerd forum and post about your love for him and how IS (not how you wish he was) your husband and you will threaten anyone dare tries to disagree or argue back with a nasty type-tag-war (apparently you have such a convincing way with your words). After that no one will like you, but at least you've put all this effort into making claims to this character and now he's yours! Sorta. Happy now? Ppfft. Seriously, get a life.

You could also buy all the posters that have his face on it, buy all the t-shirts with him on them, buy all the tv show episodes, action figures, toys, video games, and costume items, etc. Basically you just need to stock up on as much of his merchandise as possible so that your can create your own custom museum or sanctuary in full dedication to him. You can brag to all your other emo kid-loving friends about how much of a bigger fan you are than them, and you can have them come over to your house so that they can marvel at the beauty of your emo-kid decorated dwelling. Soon enough you'll be flat-broke and you'll have to sell your prized emo-kid possessions. And possibly your house, too.

You might have been a victim of one or more of these fan situations until you met that creepy 45-year-old woman who can't stop obsessing over emo-kid (who's only 16 years old), and well, you back away from that situation.... very slowly..... and cautiously......

But thankfully there is good news for you. You can save yourself a lot of grief, time, money and disturbing mental images by just doing this: NOT. GOING. OVERBOARD.

There is fine line between a "you're an O.K. fan" and a "you-are-so-into-this-it's-really-creepy fan". I know some people who are crazy about Star Wars and collect their merchandise and watch their movies a hecka lot, but the difference between them and crazy fans is these guys at least have self-control. They can make friends with other Star Wars lovers and still go on living their normal lives without Star Wars being the only topic of conversation. Star Wars is a fun something  and they don't treat it like it's a someone. They know that nothing about Star Wars is more important than real-life experiences and people. They let Star Wars become a fun part of their lives without letting it be their lives. To put it all simply, what these people do is prevent an invasion from happening in their hearts.

Everyone has SOMETHING they can get all nerdy about! If you know me well enough, you'll know that right now I am crazy about the Avengers. Loki and Thor = awesome. And ever since I was little I've been a big fan of Sonic the Hedgehog. "You're too slow!" My absolute favorite TV show is Avatar: The Last Airbender, and lately I've been trying to keep up with their new spin-off series, The Legend of Korra! Look, there's not necessarily anything  wrong with getting into characters and whatnot, but you have to know when to prevent a mixture of falsehood being made out of your life. With as abundant as modern media is, it is WAY easy to get caught up big time in the mix. Your time is precious and it cannot and must not all be wasted on fiction. Know and understand what is real and let go of some of the things you cling to. They won't cling back. Remember that. You are in control of your own decisions, so be strong and don't let fiction become your new reality.

Bye bye, birdies! I'm going to bed. It's way too late. In fact, it's not even June 4th anymore. It's June 5th!!!! AHHHHHH!

SCARY! O.o

Hey there my homies in Russia and India!!


I noticed that on the new and snazzy Blogger update I can track where in the world my Blogger is being viewed and searched. If it turns up as someone's search result, it tracks that. If someone has viewed my profile, it tracks that. It also knows where you were when you viewed my page. The cool part about this is that I have people following me and watching me in Russia and India.  So I just wanna say Здравствуйте and Namasté to you! The scary part is that... that's just scary..... too scary..... It's like Google is watching all of us..... All the time!!! In OUR SLEEP!!!!!!!! Ok, ok, maybe not quite THAT extreme, but still, that's just freaky. O_O


I find that the scary factor with Google has gone up a ton recently. Ever since half the internet has been linked together like a web to Google things have made me feel a little uneasy. I dislike the fact that once you set up a Gmail account you get alongside it a Blogger, a Youtube, a Google+ profile and about a million other services associated with Google. I thought maybe the Youtube and (obviously) the Blogger additions were cool, but it's also weird and unnecessary that Google now access and information to everything anyone ever posts. Also, Google "knows" and tracks down a lot more about you than you know, so careful what you post and what you use through it. All you've ever seen, searched and done while Google was open is recorded somewhere on Google under your account. Even if your history was deleted, they still have that information on their end of your account.

Google knows that I have a mac, have about 300 pictures installed on my computer, 25 documents, and that I visit Facebook the most often in my Safari browser. It knows how many songs I've downloaded onto iTunes, how long my computer has been one and when I shut it down, and when I play Bejeweled 3 or Diner Dash.  How does it know all this? IP addresses. I don't even know what THOSE are.


Besides me being freaked out over all the scary things associated with Google and my Blogger account, I DID see the Avengers for the second time yesterday! LOVE THAT MOVIE!!!! Great heroes, great villain, and great fun (See my previous post titled, "The Avengers, gods, and my Latest Thoughts on us Human Beings" under the May 2012 tab if you haven't already). Before that I ate at a Chinese restaurant with my buddies and had this really yummy egg drop soup, a crab rangoon, fried rice, and an assortment of Chinese veggies. :) I rarely have Chinese/Vietnamese/Japanese food, so when I get the chance to eat them, it makes me very happy. :D 


A few days ago I also bought from Wal-Mart a Batman shirt, some colorful plaid shorts, and a picture frame for a Hatsune Miku artwork that my BFF Claire gave me for my birthday. BTW, Wal-Mart is convenient and is loaded with licensed character products, but it scares me too, but that's another story... For another time.... If I even bother telling about it.... Which I prolly WON'T. 


до свидания and Byvajcie Bengali!!!


:)

Pop Music, Sex, and Guarding Your Heart

Hey there, my Euros!

Why does Korean Pop music make me so happy? I do not know. Last night I was cleaning the kitchen  listening to 2ne1 on my iPod singing, "nega je chahlaga bam ba ra tatata bae" and dancing around like an idiot. Hey, I can get into music so deeply, even if I don't know what they're saying, being Korean and all. XD

Which got me thinking... Music has a huge effect on everyone doesn't it? Catchy music can persuade you into tapping your toes, singing along, and dancing along. It can stick with you for the rest of the day, and have bars repeating in your head all day long. Music can also get you thinking about different things and can even give you certain emotions, desires, or concerns. Music introduces ideas, protests, preaches, teaches, influences, inspires, and brags. Well, if music alone does a lot for you, what about the lyrics?

Many people know this but don't really know this: lyrics really do have an effect on you. You must be careful with what you let into your ears, because what you let in stays in, and can change the way you think and say things.

Generally, I don't really listen to pop music. Simply because it's all the same. The set-up and placement of the verses and choruses are the same, the beats are the same, and the (you guessed it) the lyrics are the same. They're all telling stories about their romantic relationships. It is usually one of these three:

1. The relationship they are currently in
              a. How sweet and great the other person is/or how much the singer is in love with him/her
              b. How they're relationship is unstable/How the other person is damaging or is a total nightmare, yet they choose to "love 'em" anyway for one reason or another
              c. How they hate each other, thus they are destined for each other

2. The breakup/being single
             a. How much the singer misses the other and longs for them back
             b. How much the other person wants the singer back, but they refuse because they're a "jerk" (and they go about listing why it is that him/her is a jerk)
             c. How happy they are that the relationship is off
             d. How they need someone better than jerk they just broke up with in order fill the void within themselves and not be lonely anymore

Aaaaand finally:

3. Sex
            a. How "amazing" the other person looks, thus they need sex with that person
            b. How "amazing" the singer describes himself, thus they need to have sex with someone else
            c. How "amazing" sex is in general thus they need to have sex with more than one person
            d. How drunk they were when they were partying, then they had sex
            e. How cheating on your bf/gf is cool and they will never know you had sex with that person
            f. How you need to drop your bf/gf because the singer is so much more fly than them

And with number three you will always see words like, "just for one night", "lose yourself", and well, you can guess the rest. Number three is sadly the most abundant in pop music. Seriously. Listen to the local pop radio for 15 minutes only and you'll see what I mean.

Isn't it strange how much we humans desire for another? We all need someone else there with us at all times, to comfort us, to have fun with, etc. etc. etc. It's really no wonder that relationships are the hot topic of everyday media. What IS shocking is how much relationships are viewed through a dirty, twisted view, and how often singers glorify that. Lately, it's been everywhere and easy to access.

Without going into a deep philosophical analysis about sex in music, I just wanna say that just because your music has some mild suggestive themes or even extreme themes (complete with the Parental Advisory sticker and everything), it really doesn't matter how well you can "filter" all that out. It really does effect you.


Here is an example:

Imagine that your brain is a crystal glass of pure water.

Got it? Is your brain a glass of water now? OK, Good.

Now imagine that the music you choose to listen to is either one drop of red food coloring or one drop of clean water. The water being good clean fun music and the red being "dirty" music. With every clean song you listen to, a drop of clean water is added to the glass. With every dirty song you listen to, a drop of red dye is added.

At some point, you are going have to drink that water. At the end of the day, you wind down and drink the glass, and whatever you "collected" in it will go down inside you, into your core. Red dye won't necessarily "change" the water or effect how it "tastes," nor will it necessarily effect how your core "digests" it, but over time, if you keep allowing red food dye in, you'll end up drinking pure red dye, which is not sustaining nor is it healthy. What your core receives is what will determine your energy level, what you think of, and what you do. If it is stained red, the red will eventually show through.

I know, I know, that was a strange example, but I hope it kinda made sense.... Sorta....?

Anyway my point is basically what comes in comes out, like with feeding your stomach food and drink, what you take in through your eyes and ears is what feeds your brain and your heart. So do me a favor and go through your iTunes and make a few deletes, ok? I'm not saying everyone needs to switch over to listening to Christian music only, what I am saying is guard your heart. It was made more delicate than you could ever know.

Proverbs 4:23 ESV 

"Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life."

     Remember to fill your heart with the "food" that God has provided you by reading His word and praising Him daily.

 

Proverbs 4:20 ESV

"My son, be attentive to my words; incline your ear to my sayings."

     If you feel that you are stained in any form of sin or trashy media, God offers cleansing, healing, and forgiveness for that:

Psalm 51:10 ESV 

"Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me."

Thanks for reading, guys! God bless, have a great Friday and weekend!!!!  

안녕히가세요 (annyeonghi gaseyo)!!!

College Classes and a Refreshing Glass of Water

*Heya my green beans!*


So, just a few minutes ago, I got this book in the mail called, 1001 Things Every College Student Needs to Know. My Aunt Paula sent it to me and so far it looks very interesting. Basically it's a list of 1001 things that every college student needs to know (hence the name, haha). Here are a few random facts that I just now read:

#771. You need to know it's normal to miss Mom's cooking and to not want to be responsible for anything. It's also normal to like, you know, get over it.

#8.  You need to know that over one/third of the people who drop out of college do so because they can't handle the workload.

#342. You need to know that your professor could be an atheist, a communist, a bigot, a feminist, or a sexist. Your job is still to make your grades.

#936. You need to know two words: ramen noodles. They're dirt cheap, and with a little water, they almost become food. College students and mice have been known to live on them for years.

#390. You need to know that while we're all proud of you for reading your textbook, you now have to read it again.

#183. You need to know that just because a professor looks at you doesn't mean he's going to call on you. However, looking down at your toenails does tell him you don't know anything.

#865. You need to know your brain can perform only so long on PowerBars and Pop-Tarts before it loses the ability to produce a coherent sentence.

#112. You need to know the first semester is the hardest.

I think I love this book already! x3




Since I am going to be starting college classes this fall, I'm glad I have this motivational book alongside me. I am looking forward to it, and at the same time it's kinda stressing me out.

I'm going to be balancing working a job and doing college classes. I'm also going to be staying at home my freshman year. C'mon, lotsa fishies do that! The reason I am doing that is cuz my three best buddies and I are going to splitting rent on an apartment next year. These guys are all 17, so I want to wait for them to be graduated, etc. Also it is going to be saving me some money during the so-called "hardest" semester. The year will fly by. My senior year certainly did. :) Anyway, I am off to drink some water. It is important to stay hydrated! 

By the way, did you know it takes a loss of only 1% - 2% of your body's ideal water content to cause dehydration? Did you know that drinking ice cold water actually makes you lose weight because fat calories are burned to bring the water temperature up to internal 98.6 degrees F? 'Tis true. Water works wonders. 

And also, don't misinterpret your thirst drive as hunger.  Drink an ice-cold glass of water and wait a minute or two.  You'll find you are not as hungry as you thought. 

Mask/Face Paint, A.K.A Makeup

:) Hey there my art galleries! :)



IMMA TALK ABOUT MAKEUP!!!

Now, I have friends who are all very gorgeous, some of them wear lots of makeup, some only wear eyeliner or something like that, and some wear none at all! I like makeup when the right colors are chosen for your skin tone/eyes, when it is used to enhance natural features, and when self-expression is used, (not overdone) instead of copying a look you saw somewhere in a YouTube tutorial.

I also know a lot of chicas that ask themselves: how much is too much?

Instead of using long descriptions only, I shall provide pictures with brief descriptions underneath on what I think is fine, and what is too much.

Fashion icon: Twiggy

OK, so this 1960's 16-year-old Twiggy here is
known for her signature "doe-eyes" look.
This look is ok for pictures, but if you saw
some random girl going around with several
drawn-on-with-eyeliner lines below their eyes...
No.
Something could also be said about
 her shirt... 

Amy Lee: Lead singer of Evanescence
Even though I generally don't believe in black
eyeliner or purple eyeshadow (cuz people often look like
they have been punched in both eyes), this is one of the rare
exceptions. I think this look works well on Lee.
Like I said, colors have to fit you. Her hair is black and
the intense liner works without over powering her whole face.

Because glasses tend to darken your eye area and
"shrink" your eyes, lots of emphasis on the eyes is actually
good. I think this girl could've skipped the thick "cat eye"
liner and gone much thinner, but other than that,
I actually really like this look. It's cute and it reminds
me of cats. :3

This one here is my favorite. She enhanced her
natural features (her lips and cheeks) while
putting emphasis on her "milder" features,
like her eyes here, without going too
intense. I actually base how I do my
makeup with this picture.
(I like her hair too. She looks
like a cool weirdo artist lady)

NO!!!!! NO NO NO NO NOOOO!!!!
FAKE!! If you choose to emphasize a feature, you are
only supposed to choose one, not the whole face.
The photoshopped intensity of the colors are just
awful. Don't ever go there.

Lady Gaga...? You have a.... uh, gold sticker on your face.
And about your eyes...
 Mario called. He'd like his mustache back.

So here is a friendly reminder from Bethelsteans! Don't ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever,  ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever,  ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever,  ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever,  ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever,  ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever,  ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, EVER overdo the foundation. EVER. I'm serious. DON'T. Also, Don't get the stupid idea that if you use a foundation that's a couple shades darker than your natural skin tone you'll look tan. I've seen people do this. This is a one-way ticket to making a disaster-piece out of your face. 

Another thing to remember no matter what age you are;

(((MAKE UP MAKES YOU LOOK OLDER THAN YOU ALREADY ARE.)))

Sometimes this is good, you could look sophisticated, stylish, and mature. But when tweens wear makeup, it usually looks totally out of place. And you know that lady in her 60's who wears loads of lipstick, blush, and/or mascara? And wears boatloads of perfume?? Notice how that just emphasizes their AGE. IN A BAD WAY. Yeahhh.

Besides all that, think to yourself: so why DO I wear makeup? Think of the reasons why. If they are because of what "everyone else" does or because you "need" to to feel pretty, YOU HAVE A PROBLEM. If it is to impress a guy, YOU HAVE A PROB- er, wait, hold on.... What DO guys think about makeup on girls? 

OK so this just in!!! Here is what guys think about heavy eye makeup; it's practically a complete split-half decision. A huge poll showed that about 47 percent of men prefer girls with lots of eye makeup, and 53 prefer girls with little or no eye makeup. This leaves the decision to you now. Remember your intentions, and you can even pray about it. Beauty is something God made, and no one else can or will look the way you do, so make sure your makeup, if you choose to wear it, doesn't hide you or make you someone else. :) I know you've heard these cheesy "true-beauty" lines all throughout middle school and high school, but sometimes the simplest things are the easiest to forget.

AT LAST I can FINALLY give a shout-out to all my friends who either rarely or never wear makeup. You guys are beautiful. As for me, I will put up a pic of me wearing nothing on my face but a smile. That's right, none of my daily foundation, eyeliner, mascara, eye shadow, concealer, blush, brow pencil, or lip gloss is one me. Not even ChapStick. *sigh* Here goes.

There ya have it. 

Hey, that feels kinda good!

I feel so... pretty!

You guys: Stay beautiful. No matter how you decide to wear your face, remember to smile. No face should ever have to go without one. :) 

ARGH!!! MY SPEECH IS GETTING SO CHEESY!!!!!

Nachos, anyone?