Quick Update: On uprisings, the Hadestown recording and silly things.

Hi! It’s been a while. ❤

(You wouldn’t think about it that way- you got a post from me last week. But I haven’t written anything new in 3 weeks ^.^) This is the kind of messy update you’re used to have from me, so nothing new here.

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So. What’s new? Puerto Ricans overthrew a government after two weeks of protest caused by years of oppression… and a group chat. (Can you believe a Telegram chat unraveled this whole thing? Me neither.)

So… that’s cool. Proud is not enough of a word to describe how it felt to finally see Ricardo Rosselló finally resigning. Seeing people celebrating in the streets live is something I will never forget. (Of course, if you follow me on Twitter, you’d know all about it- or probably… just muted me. Oops.) My day to day was spent listening to AM radio, political podcasts and Twitter (specifically David Begnaud’s twitter. He’s our national treasure. I am now a David Begnaud stan account, jsyk). I’m not here to explain it all, there are countless accounts that have been writing thousands of pages about it.(Just search for #RickyRenuncia)

Of course, you must know it’s still not over. We still do not have a stable government (and probably will not have one for a while) The next person on the chain of succession is… far from ideal and is probably involved in the whole thing. So, you will not stop hearing from us during the next few months.

What am I doing right now? I’m sort of taking a break. I listened to the Hadestown recording while writing (part of) this. I listened to all of it and I’m empty! Seriously: Doubt Comes In literally made me gasp in the end. I don’t think I’ll ever lose that feeling. I feel like it’s the complete opposite to In a Crowd of Thousands. The latter shows something the whole show has built up to, an amazing thing, and the former does the same thing, but you do not want it to happen. But it does anyway. (Wow, my way with words is the best. *pure sarcasm* I have no idea why you follow me, tbh)

I’m also catching up with all the reading and shows I abandoned during this past week (or… year, to be honest).

K-dramas:

I finished Search: WWW! And you should all watch it. (Just ignore the romantic filler. *shrugs* I was only there for the powerful female figures and their relationships, tbh)

I’m currently watching Hotel del Luna (because of IU and it was written by the Hong Sisters, so you should all run and watch it!) and Doctor John (because it’s a medical drama and it stars Ji Sung, my first Korean love).

Hotel del Luna is giving me Goblin + Master’s Sun vibes, just saying. If you like any of these you could like it.

Doctor John is only starting, but it is already showing topics that are considered taboo and I trust his vision on his dramas. So yeah. I’m very pleased with it so far and my expectations are limitless.

Books:

I finally read Soul of Stars by Ashley Poston. I am a sucker for books with plots like this (where love attempts to overthrow mind controlling, you know?) This story is the ending of a duology, which is an Anastasia retelling. I don’t have to tell you how much I love Anastasia. Just so you know, Ashley Poston has become an insta-buy author for me.

The Becoming of Noah Shaw & The Reckoning of Noah Shaw. I have mixed feelings with the first one, since not much happened. But the second one reminded me why I fell in love with Noah Shaw on the first place. It had flashbacks and snarkiness and the unreliable narrators we know and love. (also- no Mara, which was actually refreshing. Let’s see what will happen next) It took me a literal year for me to start this series because I was afraid I wouldn’t feel the same way about it. I was right, but I was still interested on the story and I actually want to know how it will end.

I reread Red, White and Royal Blue. Look: Alex and Henry’s story is the cutest thing ever. I needed something that could counteract the whole bitterness of my country’s political climate, so what’s better than reading a book about two political figures falling in love during an election period? *shrugs*

Stray thoughts: Taylor Swift’s new song is amazing. The Archer is what I expect and love from Taylor, so I think I’m going to love her next album. I’ve been avoiding streaming her old albums because of the Scooter Braun thing, and I honestly miss her so much. I wish my laptop had a CD port so I could listen to my physical copies. Ugh.

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PS: I still have around three weeks of freedom before uni starts… I haven’t rested this much in literal years, and it feels amazing.

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Is this real life? #HamiltonPR

Hello, everyone! As you probably know if you follow me either on Twitter or Instagram, I had the opportunity to see Hamilton’s “And Peggy” tour last week.

When Lin-Manuel Miranda said he would bring Hamilton to Puerto Rico, I was sceptical about the chances I would have to see it. (Especially if he would play the role one more time!)

Last year I had the chance to buy one ticket. (Immediately after I bought it I checked if it was transferrable because I would be going alone!) I felt kind of guilty because my friends also wanted to go, but I did not have the chance to buy some for them. (The online tickets sold incredibly fast!)

But, as A. Ham himself says,

I am not throwing away my shot!

So there I was. Not having any idea what to do, how I would get there, but I was going to see the musical I first fell in love with! My friend offered me a ride –I’m still immensely grateful to him! –and that was that, I would see Hamilton, in my island, on Wednesday, January 16. (And no. I had no idea it was Lin-Manuel’s birthday back then, which probably makes me a terrible fan)

Fast-forward to exactly one week ago: The day arrived (I hardly had any sleep the night before- I was that excited). I found out my friends had arrived on time to buy the students’ matinee tickets! (So yeah- this made me even happier- I felt a bit guilty that they would not be able to go)

I took my classes, put myself together with the help of some of my friends (<3) and that was that. I arrived at the theater 2 hours before showtime:

 

Got my tickets, took a few selfies:

And waited with two students who had won the lottery. (I’m so glad I met you, Monica and Orlando! I was feeling lonely and I hope I wasn’t that awkward).

The time came to enter the theater, I bought a T-shirt, and waited for the show to start.

Here’s the deal: They do not prepare you for the time when the first note starts, when you finally see your favorite songs being performed, when LIN-MANUEL MIRANDA APPEARS ON THE STAGE singing ALEXANDER HAMILTON and the whole theater starts screaming and the applause doesn’t stop.

I wish I could describe how the performances felt.

How it felt to see Angelica Schuyler singing about an instant attraction that wouldn’t trump her love for her sister. (This performance? An instant favorite. THAT REWIND!)

How it felt to see Eliza singing her heart out as she finds out about her husband’s affair.

Her piercing scream once her son dies.

The feeling when you know it’s going to end, when you do not want it to end, but it does. And you see these people who love what they’re doing with their whole heart.

When Lin-Manuel takes his Puerto Rican flag out, with pride and love for this island that has gone through so much pain, but has become so much more than that.

When he goes out one last time as the whole theater sings “Happy Birthday”, off-key, in both English and Spanish.

I never imagined how incredible everything, from the lighting, to the moving stage, to the choreography, and the music, would be. And how amazing it would be to see the whole story unfold before my eyes.

Look. Hamilton is an experience I never thought I would have. It’s something that will stay with me forever. And I am so infinitely grateful to Lin-Manuel Miranda and the whole company for making this possible, for us. For Puerto Rico.

Thank you.

New sound, same awesome self.

During this week, I have listened to Taylor Swift’s new album (1989), and I realized I loved it. Even if her sound changed, she is still the same, and we all should learn from that lesson. One shouldn’t be afraid to jump to different things, as long as we’re ourselves. It’s amazing what we can do if we get out of our comfort zones.

My favorite songs from the album are Blank Space (a satire about the public’s opinion of her) and I Know Places. She is so comfortable with the pop sound, that it sounds like she was there all along. I guess she already was, but was held back from fear. When she finally let it go, all the amazingness that characterized her came back, and better than ever. Her lyrics are still relatable, fun and emotional. She’s more mature now, and that is why she is still a role model from girls all around the world.

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Things are a bit quiet in my life, so I don’t have much to write about just yet. I have a few drafts on my iPad notes and will definitely work on them and post during this weekend.

x

Nat

P.S. Follow me on Twitter (@EvolutionOfMara).

How to feel better :)

Hello, there.

Right now, I am writing this blog as I am about to arrive to Uni to take my exam, and thinking about this makes me feel relaxed. This post is dedicated to one of my favorite blogs. You know who you are, dear.

1. Listening to music:
If you feel sad or anxious, all you have to do is listen to your happy playlist on my iPod. (If you don’t have one, make one. You will not regret it.) If I want to relax, I have a nice playlist with the songs that make me feel better, including my favorite artist: Taylor Alison Swift. (Seriously, her songs talk directly to my heart.) Right now I’m listening to Shake it Off 🙂

2. Eating pizza:
Pizza makes everything better. Some of that cheesy goodness just diffuses into my soul and helps me feel complete! My friends agree with me on that matter. We can each eat about a complete pizza all by ourselves. Okay, if you don’t like pizza, just replace it with your favorite food. Eat lots of it with no regret. You only live once, people! Eat your feelings for once!

3. Reading books!
Books are my life. Without them, I wouldn’t be who I am. I live vicariously through them. How do they make me feel better, you might ask. Well, just the smell of a book can make me eternally giddy and relaxed. Apart from that, words on paper just have this power over me. I just have to read them, and learn and live and just read. Read anything: be it motivational books, fictional books, textbooks, anything that makes you happy!

4. Watch TV Shows
Same concept as books, actually.

5. Walking around the neighborhood.
I usually don’t do this, but when I do, I immediately feel the benefits of a great walk. Exercising is fun, and even if I get extremely tired, it makes me happy. That’s especially if I have my family with me. They make fun of me because I have no physical condition… I wish I did, though. Just walk around, run around. You will improve your physical condition and release all that stress.

6. Talking to family and friends.
If by some chance you feel sad, family should be the first you tell. If not, a true friend will listen to you. I usually talk to my mom about anything, and if by some chance she were not available, my cousin is always there for me. Just find someone to talk to. Online friends also help. I have some of them, and I try to help as much as I can.

7. Writing your thoughts down.
Keeping a blog has helped me realize that my mind is more organized now. I can express my thoughts in a better way, and that way I can compartmentalize everything. If I feel sad and I don’t know why, I start writing everything down. That helps.

8. Do whatever you want.
If you want to dance, do so. If you want to talk to yourself, do it. When I was a little girl, I wasn’t afraid of anything. I didn’t care about social conventions. Honestly, that’s when I was happier. When you stop giving a f*** about everyone else, you will be free. Let it go, guys!

9. Just follow your goals, people.
Do everything in order for your life to be the way you want. Do not give up, EVER.

If you have anything else to add, comment it here. I want to know what you think about this, and what you do to be happy.

I Will Survive.

You know when all your teachers/professors align everything around a specific week?

Well, that’s me right now. I’m right in the middle of the classical example of a college hell week. 🙂

I have been able to survive half of it, but I still have two more exams left! (My hardest ones)

*Starts singing along to this*

I will write a longer post after this week. I promise 🙂

LoveLoveLove,

Nat x

A Magical Night.

Tonight was one of the best nights of my life.

I had an exam today. I studied a lot and it was easier than I thought. But what happened after the exam was magical. At first we didn’t know what to do. We wanted to do something to celebrate, maybe just eat some ice cream. But then my friend put her music on and we stayed, singing, dancing, laughing and having this amazing time. It just started with her just showing us her new speakers on her car and people just started arriving! It was like this bubble where we had no worries, no responsibilities. Nothing apart from that moment existed. We had even forgot about having to leave soon, since it was night already. An hour passed, and we didn’t even notice it. All of this happened in my university’s parking.

It was an amazing feeling. I don’t even know how to describe it with words. Possibly it was just sheer, pure happiness from spending time with friends. I hadn’t felt this way in years! I felt free. For the first time in a while, I felt young.

I didn’t know what Charlie from the Perks of Being a Wallflower meant until now. In that moment, I swear we were infinite.