What I've Been Listening To: So Far in 2014!

HELLO 2014 (Okay, so the year's halfway over, but anywho).  It's been ages since I last wrote an entry!!! But since I've finally found the time to sit down and breathe, I decided I NEEDED to share what music I have been listening to this year.  Put on your seatbelts kids, it's about to get cray-cray! (what am I even saying?):

If you haven't heard Kodaline's song, All I Want, then stop reading this, listen to it and then come back and listen to Ellie Goulding's cover of it.  Kodaline is so awesome, but Ellie's cover is even better than the original.



I first heard Disclosure's and Sam Smith's song, Latch, on the radio.  And I liked it.  But Sam's acoustic version is AMAZING.  His voice is out of this world.  



ED SHEERAN RELEASED NEW MUSIC, PEOPLE.  AND I CANNOT HANDLE THE FACT THAT HE IS RELEASING A NEW ALBUM SOON. His first single, Sing, is amazing. But I also like the song, Don't, which is apparently about his secret relationship with Ellie Goulding that didn't end so well (*gasp* scandalous!).






The Royal Concept's song, On Our Way, is just one of those songs that puts me in a better mood when I listen to it.  Enjoy!



Can we take a minute to talk about Coldplay?  I am soooo stoked for their new album.  Their song, Magic, is simple, yet deep and meaningful. 



Last, but not least, is an oldie, but a personal favorite of mine.  I was so excited when I heard it in the trailer for How to Train Your Dragon 2. It's probably my favorite Thirty Seconds to Mars song.

What I've Been Listening To - December 2013!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I just realized that it is the day before Christmas and I have not written about what I've been listening to for the month of December!!!!! The horror.........Anyways, here's what my ears have been enjoying this month.

If you have not seen Catching Fire yet, then you need to shut your computer off and GO NOW.  It is amazing, awesome, etc.  And the soundtrack is even better.  Here's one of my favorites by Coldplay, "Atlas".



Christina Perri is probably best known by the world from her single, "Jar of Hearts" from a few years ago.  But the first single from her next album is BRILLIANT.  It is raw and emotional and I find myself singing to it when I am home by myself. 



If you don't know that Beyonce dropped a super secret album a few weeks ago, THEN HAVE YOU BEEN LIVING UNDER A ROCK?!?!?   I will never forget the moment I found out that she dropped an album.  It was close to midnight, everyone in the house was asleep, and I had no clue who to talk to about it.  Even though she has been getting some flack about the explicit lyrics and how different it is from other music she has done, every artist has to evolve throughout their career. Personally,  I think her new album is GENIUS.  Here's her first single, "XO".



I'm not sure who else watches The X Factor, but I am so happy that Alex and Sierra won this last season.  I loved every performance they did on the show and I can actually see myself buying their album.  Here's one of my favorite performances they did this season, a cover of Sara Bareilles' song, "Gravity".




Last, but certainly not least, is Ray LaMontagne.  I haven't listened to much of him in the past, but I listened to some of his stuff the other day and just really liked it.  Here's one of his songs I really enjoy, "Hannah".



I feel like it is only fitting that I end this with a Christmas song, so here is one I have been enjoying this season, Leona Lewis' song "One More Sleep".

 

HAVE A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!

What I've Been Listening To - November 2013

It feels like forever since I've posted a blog entry, but it's really only been a month.  So, here's an entry for what I've been listening to for the month of November.


 I can't remember when I first heard Atlas Genius, but I have been loving their album, "When It Was Now".  My favorite track off it is "Back Seat".




In honor of The Killers releasing their new album, "Direct Hits", I've been listening to a bit more of them lately.  Here's one of my favorite songs from them, "All These Things I've Done".




The past few months, I have really been enjoying Augustana more than I usual do.  Even though I love all their albums, I could listen to their song, "You Were Made for Me" all the friggin' time.  I absolutely love it.  If I just need a nice, mellow song to listen to while I'm studying or just hanging out, I instantly play that song.




 I feel like it has been a bajillion years since Ed Sheeran released a new solo track.  However, this month, he released a new song for the movie, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.  AND IT IS FRIGGIN AMAZING.  It also blows my mind that he wrote the song the same day he got to watch the film.  AND he plays almost every instrument on the song (besides the cello).  I can't get over the talent that this guy has.  Watch the man at work in the music video for "I See Fire".




This would not be complete without me speaking of One Direction.  Their third album, "Midnight Memories", is being released tomorrow, November 25, and I cannot get over how great it is (from what I've heard).  While their first album was mainly pop songs, their third album shows that the boys of One Direction are capable of more than just your standard bubble gum pop.  One can hear a bit of 80s rock and even a bit of a Mumford and Sons sound.  Also, not only did the band co-write 15/18 tracks, they also worked with Gary Lightbody from Snow Patrol and Ryan Tedder from OneRepublic on a few songs from this album. Of course, I get some crap for being a 22 year old One Direction fan, but I've enjoyed their music since before they even released their first album in the United States in 2012.  So, it's nice to see how much their music has evolved from their first album and how they have broken out of the standard boy band mold.  Here's their second single from the album, "Story of My Life".

   

What I've Been Listening To - October 2013

I enjoyed writing my last post about the music I was currently listening to at the time, so I thought I would give it another go.  Here's some artists and songs that I am currently enjoying:


I am absolutely in love with Zedd.  I first heard of him from his song he did with the Foxes, "Clarity", and when his album dropped, I loved the song he did with Ryan Tedder, "Lost at Sea".



I can't exactly remember how I first heard of the band, Haim, but it doesn't matter because I love love love their album, Days Are Gone.  Their music reminds me of the classic 80s songs that you can listen to over and over again.  Here's my favorite track off their album, "Don't Save Me".



I've loved Ellie Goulding ever since her first album came out in 2010, and her latest album, Halcyon, is even better than her first.  The deluxe edition, Halcyon Days, includes this song which I fell in love from the moment I first heard it.



I haven't listened much to Lupe Fiasco.  I really like his song, "Battle Scars", but he recently released this song with Ed Sheeran.  And if Ed's name is on it, I have to take a listen to it.  It does not disappoint. 



Lorde is one of my favorite artists right now.  She has her own sound and I cannot believe she is only 16.  Her album, Pure Heroine, is pretty good, but her single, "Royals" is still my favorite.

My Journey With Thyroid Cancer (Written August 2012)

It's been a year since I wrote the following story.  Reading back on it now, it's funny to see that I was still waiting to hear if I got into nursing school at the time that I wrote it.  Now, I'm in my third semester of nursing school and only about 9 months from graduating (eek!).  Since this blog is all about my life and advice that I would give others, I thought I would post my cancer story here since it was such a big part of my life and the lessons I learned through the journey are worth sharing. 

September 1st marks the beginning of Thyroid Cancer Awareness Month.  A year ago, I didn’t know how important this month would become to me.  However, on March 14th, 2012, I was diagnosed with papillary carcinoma, a type of thyroid cancer and my whole life changed.  I’ve never really publicly talked about how I was diagnosed or how I was feeling or even how I am feeling now.  But, since this month is all about bringing awareness to this disease, I thought I’d share my story, as open as I can be.  I don’t know how many will actually read this or even read all of it, but I’m putting it all out there.   

              It all started the first week of January 2012.  I had just finished some filing at my dad’s office and was heading back to my mom’s for dinner.  All of a sudden, I got the strangest feeling in my throat while I was driving.  You know that feeling in your throat when you are about to cry?  That’s what it felt like.  But it wouldn’t go away.  When I got home, I told my mom about it and she thought I had mucus or something stuck down my throat.  She told me not to worry about it and that it would go away.  However, several days past, and the feeling was still there.  The day before I was supposed to return to College Station for the spring semester, I told my dad about it.  He knew I was worried, so he instructed me to find an ear, nose, and throat doctor in College Station and make appointment.  So, during the first week of classes, I went to see an ENT doctor hoping he would tell me what was wrong.  As soon as I told him what I was experiencing, he felt around on my neck and immediately told me that the left lobe of my thyroid was enlarged.  He started telling me that I had to make an ultrasound appointment, and then they would have to do a biopsy depending on what the ultrasound showed.  I was terrified.  When I heard the word biopsy, I was immediately thinking cancer. So, I made my ultrasound appointment and they sent me on my way.  The next few hours were torture.  Both of my parents were at work, so there was no way to get a hold of them.  And to make things worse, I had to go sit in on a two hour session for a writing class that introduced us to the course.  I couldn’t stop thinking about what the doctor told me.  I had millions of thoughts running through my head. Why is my thyroid enlarged?  Am I sick?  Do I have cancer?  I can’t have cancer!  I’m only 20!  When I got out of my class, I finally got a hold of my mom.  I can’t recall the exact conversation now, but I remember her telling me not to worry until we saw what the ultrasound showed.  The next few days dragged on until the day my ultrasound arrived.  When the technician took me into the room, I asked her if I was going to be able to get the results that day.  Unfortunately, she said I would have to wait until I went back to my doctor.  I guess she saw the stress on my face and offered to see if the radiologist would come talk to me after he looked at the pictures.  The ultrasound went off without a hitch and afterwards, the technician went to give the pictures to the radiologist.  After about twenty minutes, he came in and told me that I had a large cyst on the left lobe of my thyroid and a few solid nodules on the right lobe.  The cyst was actually pressing against my esophagus which was why I was having that weird feeling in my throat.  He told me that cysts can usually be aspirated or drained of their fluid.  As for the nodules on my right lobe, he said that I shouldn’t worry about them at the moment since they were small.  (Little did he know…)  So, I felt somewhat relieved after my ultrasound since I knew more of what was going on in my body.  The following week, I returned to the ENT doctor to discuss my results.  We both agreed that an aspiration of the cyst would be best at the moment.  He also said he would try to take a sample of the nodules on the right just to make sure they weren’t a problem.  Now, getting a cyst aspirated is an interesting experience, especially if the cyst is in your neck.  I won’t go into much detail, but it was very uncomfortable!  The doctor ended up draining two vials of what looked like blood.  However, he was unable to get a good angle on the needle to take samples of the nodules on my right side.  He told me to come back the following week to get the results of what was drained from my cyst and to see if another doctor could get a sample of the nodules.  (By this time, I felt like test subject)  However, a few days later, I started to get that weird feeling in my throat again.  All I could think of was, “Crap.”  When I went back to the doctor, he looked at my neck again with the ultrasound and he confirmed that my cyst had refilled.  And my results showed that it was indeed blood that was drained.  He brought in another doctor to look at my neck to see what he thought I should do.  They both agreed that surgery was my only option.  Since the cyst refilled, there was no other way to treat it except to remove that portion of my thyroid.  And then he began to explain all the risks that could occur during a thyroidectomy.  He suggested that I only get the left lobe removed, and to also have a biopsy done of my right lobe since it was going to be exposed anyways.  However, he assured me that the chance it was cancer was low (Ha!).  When I left, my head was spinning.  Surgery?!  All I could think of was that I didn’t have time for a surgery!  I have classes, exams, labs.  I was a wreck.  When I told my parents what the doctor said, they both wanted me to get a second opinion.  So, the following week, I drove to Houston to see an endocrinologist, Dr. Brown (who happens to be the same doctor I see now).  He viewed my ultrasound photos, felt around on my neck, and pretty much came to the same conclusion that my ENT doctor did.  Surgery was my only option.  Thankfully, my dad and uncle know a cardiothoracic surgeon, Dr. McKowen, that they have worked with for several years and he agreed to perform my surgery.  Dr. McKowen wanted to leave me with at least half a thyroid, so he agreed with my ENT doctor’s plan to only remove my left lobe.  He would only remove the right lobe if the pathology results of the left lobe came back problematic.  So, we scheduled my surgery the Monday of my spring break because I was determined not to miss any classes. 

               The morning of my surgery came, and I was a little nervous.  I completely trusted my surgeon, but it was just the thought of having a surgery done was making me scared.  However, the CRNA that was working my case came in shortly before my surgery and gave me drug to relax me, which he called a “margarita”.  I felt slightly more relaxed after that.  Finally, my surgeon was there and ready to go and I said bye to my parents and my uncle as they wheeled me into the OR.  This was where I started to feel nervous again.  In fact, when they attached my heart monitors and blood pressure cuff to me, I could hear how fast my heart was beating.  The CRNA even asked me if I was nervous and, of course, I told him yes.  He assured me everything was going to be fine, told me to think of something peaceful (I remember I thought of a beach), and I was out.  A few hours later, I woke up in the ICU (I had to stay here overnight, so my levels, like calcium, could be monitored).  Besides feeling slightly nauseous, I felt fine for just having surgery.  However, I HATED being in the ICU.  Every time I had to use the bathroom, someone had to help me unhook all my wires.  And let me tell you, I had to pee a lot because I had all these fluid running through my IV.  I felt awful whenever I had to push the little button for someone to come help me.  Anyways, back to the actual story.  When my mom came in a little later, she told me they only took the left lobe out because the pathology results didn’t show cancer or any other problem.  I was so relieved.  No cancer!  I made it through the night fine and was moved out of the ICU the next morning.  I was actually thinking that I was going to be able to go home that afternoon, but the nurses hadn’t gotten any discharge papers for me.  I thought that was strange since my levels were good, I was able to somewhat eat solid foods, and I felt good.  I should have known something was wrong when my surgeon’s PA came and asked my mom to talk outside the room.  She came back a little later and I noticed it looked like she had been crying.  I didn’t think it was anything else except stress from me being in the hospital.  So, Tuesday night came and there was no word on if I was going to be discharged, so I settled in for the night (My dad actually stayed that night and I still have no idea he slept in that chair that was in the room).  Wednesday, March 14th started out being a great day.  I was allowed to shower that morning (I couldn’t wash my hair though) and my nurse gave me fresh sheets.  I was feeling much better.  Later in the afternoon, when both my parents were there, my surgeon came for a visit and spoke the words that would change my life forever.  He said that after they removed my left lobe, they sent it to pathology to get a good look at it.  While they were waiting for the results, he noticed a lymph node in my neck that looked slightly irregular.  He went ahead and decided to remove that as well and had just fully removed it when they got the results from pathology that the left lobe did not show any problems.  So, he went ahead and closed me up.  However, he had pathology look at the lymph node that he removed.  He also had another doctor look at it.  They all confirmed that what was found on the lymph node was papillary carcinoma.  Therefore, he would have to go back in and remove the right lobe of my thyroid the following morning.  I distinctly remember him telling me that I would live a long life and be able to have children like any normal person.  After he left the room, I was still slightly confused.  I looked at my parents and asked, “I have cancer?” and when they said yes, I felt like my world crashed.  I let myself cry for a few minutes with them and tried to pull myself together.  Just hearing the word ‘cancer’ and actually associating it with me for the first time was scary.  I wanted to stay strong for myself, but I especially wanted to stay strong for my mom because I knew how worried she was about me taking the news.  Honestly, after it set in, I was more worried about having to go through another surgery.  I just had one, for goodness sakes!  I tried not to cry for the rest of the day, except I had two weak moments when I talked to my cousin, Callie, on the phone, and when I was alone with my sister-in-law, Chelsea.  My brother, Troy, agreed to stay the night with me and slept in the same awful chair my dad had the night before.  I don’t know how I managed to sleep that night, but I remember I woke up in the middle of the night.  As I laid there in the dark, I prayed to God for the strength to get through the next day and for every day that was to come.  Early the next morning, after a tearful goodbye (on my part) with my brother, they wheeled me down to pre-OP.  I was a ball of nerves and that little “margarita” didn’t help much this time.  About ten minutes before they came to wheel me out, my dad pulled out his phone because he said he had something to show me.  My little 2 year old half brother and 5 year old half sister had made me a video telling me they loved me and for me to get better sooner.  Just seeing their little faces was enough to break me down and I was still crying when they wheeled me to the OR.  In fact, I think I still had tears in my eyes when they put me to sleep.  I woke up in the ICU for the second time in four days a few hours later.  I asked my nurse, whose name was Steve, if he knew how my surgery went.  He assured me that it went fine and that they removed the rest of my thyroid.  I spent the next two days in the ICU and was finally released from the hospital after five and a half days. What a way to spend spring break, huh?

              Since I ended up having two surgeries over spring break instead of one, my doctors would not let me return to school right away.  I was extremely upset because I had exams, assignments, and a project to work on.  Fortunately, my professors (except one) understood and wished me luck in recovering until I came back.  So, I spent a few days resting and tried not to be stressed about school. I can’t really explain what I was thinking or what mindset I was in during this time because I don’t think I even know.  I mean, I was just diagnosed with cancer!  I think I tried to push that thought out of my mind and try to focus on getting well enough to return to College Station.  Thankfully, one week after my second surgery, my endocrinologist and my surgeon gave me the okay to drive back to College Station and return to classes.  I was ecstatic!!  I could finally return to my normal routine, focus on school, and try to forget what had happened.  The next day, I attended my Friday classes and was warmly welcomed back to work (I work at TCALL, Texas Center for Adult Literacy and Learning, as a student worker).  I was, however, self-conscious about my scar because I still had to wear a bandage over it, but I tried not to let it bother me.  However, I did have a lot of things to keep me busy.  In the next few weeks, I got confirmed at St. Mary’s Catholic Church, got my Aggie Ring (Whoop!), and had several exams to study for.  Before I knew it, May had arrived, finals were over, and I was returning home for a few weeks before summer classes started.  During this time, I was supposed to undergo my radiation therapy.  In order to do this, my hormone levels had to be within a certain range, so I was supposed to stop taking my thyroid medicine I have to take every day.  After one week without it, I felt okay.  However, the second week without my medicine was horrible.  I was becoming extremely hypothyroid (which is what my doctor wanted) and it was awful.  I was moody, would cry at the drop of a hat, my metabolism completely stopped and I gained probably 10-15 pounds in that two week period.  I spent most of my time on the couch with my dog because I didn’t have energy to do anything.  I just felt depressed all the time.  When we went to my doctor to get the results of my blood test, my hormone levels were in the 170s, while the normal level is around 25.  So, I was definitely ready to undergo the treatment.  (I’m pretty sure I even mentioned to my doctor I hoped the radiation would give me super powers so I could be a super hero.  At least I could still crack a joke!)  A few days later, I returned to the same hospital where I had my surgeries except I went to the radiology department this time.  When they took me to the back, the doctor came in to go over the rules I had to follow during the treatment.  The most important rule was that I had to be ‘quarantined’.  I wasn’t allowed to be within five feet of people or animals for a 4-5 day period.  The treatment basically consisted of me swallowing a pill that was made up of radioactive iodine.  If there were any thyroid cells left in my body, they would soak up the iodine and would be visible in the scans I would later undergo.  Since the iodine was radioactive, it would kill the thyroid cells when they absorbed the iodine.  I remember when the doctor gave me the pill, he had on massive gloves and used tongs to take the it out of the tube it was in.  All I was thinking was, “What is this thing going to do to my body if you can’t even touch it?!”  I also had to follow a low-iodine diet while going through the treatment.  So, for the 5 day period, I basically ate fruit and bland chicken.  Very exciting.  I spent the next few days in my room, by myself, because my mom couldn’t be near me.  Luckily, my treatment was timed perfectly because the day after the 5 day period ended, I started summer classes.  I still felt bad because I had only restarted taking my medicine a few days before, but I was just happy to be done with the radiation itself!  Ten days after I swallowed the iodine pill, I had to drive back to Houston to have a scan done to see where the iodine was absorbed.  For an hour, I had to lie very still while the machine did several scans of my body, especially my neck.  I was a little scared because what if the cancer had spread somewhere else in my body?  What if I had to have another surgery?  I wouldn’t know any of this for about two weeks when I went back to my endocrinologist for the results.  So, I kept myself busy with classes, work, and studying for my nursing entrance exam to prevent myself from thinking about it.  However, when the day finally came, it was good news.  My scans showed that I did have thyroid cells in my body, but they were only in my neck, meaning that I didn’t have any cancer anywhere else in my body.  It also meant that the radiation killed those thyroid cells that were still there.  I couldn’t have been more relieved!  My doctor informed me that I would have to have another scan in six months, but for now, things looked good.  The only thing he had to worry about now was determining the right dosage of Synthroid for me to take (Synthroid is the medication I have to take every day that takes the place of my thyroid).  

   By the time I got the results of my scans, it was near the end of June.  I think this was the time that it really hit me that I had cancer.  I don’t know if it was because I had been doing some shadowing at the College Station Med Center and I was around people that were sick that made me really start to think about it.  Or maybe it was the fact that I had more free time and my mind wandered to that subject.  But it really hit me hard around that time.  Being diagnosed with cancer affects you physically, emotionally, and psychologically.  I think since I had gone through all the physical aspects of it, the emotional and psychological parts slammed into me like a freight train.  There was one week in July where I felt really down about it.  I was taking a writing class and for our fourth paper, we could write about a medical journey that someone we know went through or one that we went through ourselves.  I already knew that I was going to write about my thyroid cancer.  However, I didn’t know that we were going to have to tell our topics to the whole class.  I knew that two people would edit our papers, but saying “I had cancer” out loud became scary to me.  When it was my turn, I just said I was writing about having my thyroid removed.  I couldn’t tell this room of people that I hardly knew that I had been diagnosed with cancer.  The sentence just wouldn’t come out.  Had I become afraid of the word, cancer, itself?  When I got home later that afternoon, I was so upset.  I had hit a low point.  Thankfully, one of my roommates, Lacy, was home and she talked things out with me.  I don’t know what I would have done that day if she hadn’t been able to help me work through my emotions.  I even bought one of those Chicken Soup books for cancer survivors, hoping that it would help me.  It actually did.  By reading the stories in it, it invigorated my spirit that had been so low in the previous weeks.

             Since then, I have given a lot of thought to what I’ve learned from all of this.  Life is short and you need to take the time to enjoy it.  The past few years or so, I’ve been so concentrated with school that I haven’t been spending enough time with the people that matter the most to me.  Without my family and friends that were by me through all of this, I wouldn’t have been kept as sane as I was.  I also learned to stop asking, “Why me?”  God gave me this journey for a reason.  Life is too short to be bitter about it.  I’ve made it through what hopefully will be the worst and I am grateful for that.  I was lucky to be diagnosed with a form of thyroid cancer that has high survival rates.  Most people go on to live a relatively normal life.  As for my fear of the actual word, I think I’ve gotten over it.  I still feel a bit of fear within me whenever a professor mentions the word “cancer” in class (which is rare), but I can say it and talk about it.  I found an interesting quote the other day online: "Cancer does not define me, but how I live and fight with cancer DOES define me.”  This could not be truer.  I AM NOT cancer.  Cancer just happens to be a chapter in the story of my life.  It will always be part of me, but it is not who I am.  I think part of my fear in telling others about it was that I was afraid that when other people thought of me, all they would associate me with was that I had cancer.  I know that sounds awful, but that’s really how I felt.  Those people in my writing class didn’t know anything about me and I was scared that if I told them I had cancer that was all they would know me as.  But as my mom said, “You shouldn’t worry about what other people think.  You had cancer and survived.  If they don’t want to associate themselves with you because you had cancer, then it’s their loss.”  I also learned that I need to talk about things instead of bottling them up.  I usually wear my emotions on my sleeve, but for some reason, when I was having a hard time dealing with this, I felt like I couldn’t talk about it.  I waited until I was at my lowest to finally talk to someone.  As for the future, of course I have fears for what lies ahead of me.  Sometimes, I lie awake at night praying that the cancer doesn’t come back.  But I know if it does, I will, as we Aggies like to say, beat the hell outta it!  I also worry about passing this on to any kids that I will have in the future.  It might sound silly to worry about that now when I am nowhere near having kids, but it is something that I think about sometimes.  Also, I’ve thought about working with ThyCa, Thyroid Cancer Survivors’ Association, in the future to help promote awareness and work with others who went through what I did.  I think that would put my cancer battle to good use.

              As for now, I am going to work hard at my last semester at A&M and hope that I get into the nursing school here, so I can start classes there in the spring.  I feel better than I have in months, physically and emotionally.  My doctor is still working on finding the right dosage of medication for me, but I know we’ll get there eventually.  I’ll undergo my other scan in a few months to make sure the cancer hasn’t come back.  I just hope my story brings more awareness to you all about thyroid cancer because, unfortunately, statistics show it is on the rise.  And I don’t want any of you to have to go through what I did.        

                       

If you want more information, check out http://www.thyca.org/

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Philippians 4:13  

"Positive Patty" versus "Negative Nancy": Living a Positive Life

"Are you a glass half empty or a glass half full type of person?"

That's the question, isn't it?  In the past few weeks, I feel like the topics of positivity and optimism have come up a lot in my life.  So, I thought I would share some of my thoughts on the subjects.

I've always considered myself a "glass half full" type of person.  I believe that things happen for a reason and that God puts us through certain trials and journeys in order to teach us a lesson or to redirect our path.  When we are going through a tough time, it's easy to think, "Why?  Why is this happening to me? What did I do to deserve this?"  But, what we really should be thinking is, "Why not me? I am loved.  I am strong.  I will persevere."  Remember:

When I was diagnosed with cancer in 2012, I am not going to lie, the thought "Why me?" did cross my mind in the early days after my diagnosis.  But I began to think that maybe I was going through this journey for SOME reason.  As I look back on it now, I look at it with a positive attitude because I grew and I learned from that experience.  And it taught me more about how to live a positive life.

Life is precious gift and to lead a life with a negative mind will only leave you with a negative life.  No matter what you are going through, things can always be worse.  I believe that each day is a blessing and that we should make each one count for something.  When I am an old grandma sitting in my rocking chair on my front porch, I want to look back on my life and say, "Yea, I went through some hard times.  But I got through them and made the best of them.  I learned from each one and despite those trials, I made sure that each day was filled with smiles, laughter, and love."

Next time you are going through a rough patch and are feeling a bit like a "negative Nancy", try looking on the brighter side of things.  You'll be surprised what you find.  

What I've Been Listening To

I absolutely love music.  So, how appropriate is it that my first actual blog post is about my favorite tracks that are currently out?  Check it out:

Don't get me wrong, I love Katy Perry's new single, "Roar".  However, I thought it was a standard, pop song similar to her singles from the "Teenage Dream" album.  Her new track, "Dark Horse" from her upcoming album "Prism", is definitely the new Katy Perry sound we have all been waiting for.  It features Juicy J and the beat is insane.  Hear for yourself:




I have been obsessed with this Manchester based band since I discovered them back in August.  The 1975 have yet to play a concert in America, but when they do, I will definitely be the first to buy a ticket to that show.  Here's their song, "You", from the deluxe UK version of their debut album:




Justin Timberlake came back on the music scene this past year with "The 20/20 Experience".  He is getting ready to release "The 20/20 Experience Part 2" later this month and I could not be more ready.  His first single, "Take Back the Night", was good, but his newly released song, "TKO", is even better.  Just like the song says, this one is a knockout.  Check it out:




I absolutely love The Killers and they are back and better than ever with their new single, "Shot At the Night".  It has a very 80's sound to it and I cannot get enough of it.  It will be featured on their "Direct Hits" album coming out this November.




I was hesitant to put this one on here, but Miley Cyrus' new single "Wrecking Ball" really is a great song.  We all have our own opinions on the now infamous music video, but the song itself, in my opinion, is great.  I didn't care much for her first single, "We Can't Stop", but "Wrecking Ball" surprised me in a good way.  It's raw, emotional, and definitely one of my new favorite tracks.




Tom Odell is another British singer that I am currently falling in love with.  His album "Long Way Down" just recently came out in America and it is fantastic.  Here is my favorite track:




I recently discovered the Australian band, Birds of Tokyo, and I am digging their sound.  This song, from their album "Birds of Tokyo" released in 2010, is one that will be on replay: