The Struggle the World has with Depression

Good afternoon, everyone!

I hope all is well with y'all today!

For today's post, I want to write about something very relevant to things going on in the world, the media, as well as in my own life. I think it's an important subject matter to address and for all of us to be aware of- and that is the subject of depression and suicide.

As many of you may already well know- I have suffered from depression, anxiety, as well as suicidal ideologies and tendencies for a long time now. Fighting these mental illnesses and helping others fight them has become a most important cause to me over the years. I "work"/"volunteer" for a non-profit organization that a dear friend of mine created back in 2007 called Defeat Depression. It is basically just a page on Facebook and mostly all over online that has recently grown to an audience of over 160,000- but it deals with helping many of those out there who are greatly suffering from depression or bipolar disorder or anxiety or schizophrenia, or any other mental illness out there that I have ignorantly neglected to mention. Between my two friends and I, we post important articles as well as inspiring quotes, messages, and images that we find and share them with all of our followers. We get mostly positive feedback from people who love the page and enjoy the cute little things we share. But of course there are always those out there that are in very bad places mentally and don't agree with our positivity or in the fact that we are trying to help them. I totally understand where these people are coming from- but it also frustrates me to see that they are just plain ol' giving up. I know it's OF COURSE not their fault- but we have to keep on trying and fighting to overcome such an awful predicament.

Depression is a serious thing- it can lead to death in many cases, as well as many physical ailments and actions against our bodies. It can be situational, but it is often just... There. I wish I could tell you that it goes away and that you can be completely cured of your illness. Believe me, I wish I could tell you such things. But I cannot, unfortunately. Some days are better than others, however. And you've got to keep on going in order to experience those good days. Because those days are so so so worth it. They're what life is all about, to be completely honest.

Recently, the subjects of depression and suicide have become a whirlwind of discussion topics in the media- all due to the death of comedian Robin Williams. It is truly an unbelievably sad story. The poor man suffered from depression for a long time, as well as addiction. He was in such a bad place that he felt the only way out was to end his own life. And he sadly succeeded in doing so. It is often the funny ones who satirically joke about the world that suffer tremendously. And we would never know unless they told us so.

I will admit that it somewhat upsets me over the fact that the subject is just barely coming to light with the death of this poor man- plenty of people in the world have and still do suffer from this illness day-to-day, hour-to-hour, minute-to-minute. I'm not saying I'm not sad about the death of Robin Williams, I am. And I feel awful that he, too, had to suffer so badly, and now his family is also more than likely suffering over their loss of such a great father, husband, friend, etc. But- here's the thing- depression has existed for as long as there has been life on this earth, and it is just now becoming a "fad" for people to tell others to be better aware of.

I personally feel that light is shed on such topics as these when it is personal. And that saddens me. I will say that I am happy to see people are finally starting to come around to the idea that those of us quiet ones need some comfort and support as often as possible. And also lately, the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge has been circling around and raising money and awareness as it does. Things like this restore my faith in humanity and I love love love to see it. But with the death of Robin Williams- it almost seems too late. Why couldn't we have raised more awareness, help, and support before?

But you know what? It's not too late. It's never too late. You can stand up and fight with us- whether you personally suffer, whether you know someone suffering, or whether you just want to give a sh*t about the things going on in the world. And as you well know- there is a ton of garbage going on in the world right now, but there's always somewhere you have to start. So why not start here?

The world has struggled with depression and mental illness for all of time. Individuals have suffered, loved ones of suicide victims have suffered, and those of you who consider us "crazy" or "messed up" obviously need to learn a thing or two about what's really going on. We all have suffered. We all have struggled.

Stand up and fight against depression. It's hurting people. Mentally and physically. And what's worse is- it's killing people. Save a life. Do something good for yourself, for us, for those suffering. You can make a difference.

And may Mr. Williams and all of those who have taken their lives because of such deep and dark depression, rest in peace.

Thanks for reading.

xoxo, Clare

How to Throw a Shark Week Party

Hello, all!

As you should know, this week is SHARK WEEK on Discovery Channel. It's a whole week of shows dedicated to sharks- and it's totally epic. If you don't know anything about it, you are truly missing out. And if you can't already tell, I'm crazy about it. Hence, this post. Just this very night I hosted my very own Shark Week Party- all shark-themed, of course.

If you're ever interested in hosting your own "Shark Party," check back here to get some awesome ideas! And here you are; some fantastic tips on throwing an epic Shark Week Party:

1. Invitations. Whether you're old school or new school- get creative. Send out an e-vite, or use snail mail! I went the modern way and created an event on Facebook; but to make things more creative and fun, I made my own image to share on the event page! My creation is to the right of this text. So it's obviously very mediocre, but you get the point. I was basing it off of an image I found on Pinterest (which, if none of the rest of this blog post of mine provides you with good enough ideas, go there and find a million more ideas that you can use and create yourself!). Get your point across by including a shark somewhere on your invitation... Or simply writing, "SHARK PARTY!" I did both, clearly. I love sharks, so, I mean, there you have it.

2. T-shirts. Have more fun by buying a pack of white t-shirts as well as some fabric markers, and go to town! Some ideas for shirts include: one like the invitation above, "Happy Shark Week" written all over, the phrase "JAW-SOME," "I (HEART) SHARKS," or just plain drawing a shark on your shirt (or if you're not down for drawing a whole shark like I was with my t-shirts, draw some waves and a little fin sticking out!). If you don't make shirts ahead of time- make this a fun activity to do at the party.


3. Decorations. Create some banners with little images or shark-sayings on them. Here is my cheap-y and crappy-looking example. It's a little difficult to see in that picture to the left, and I apologize I didn't take a better photo. Anyway- have fun with this idea! Stick with a blue or ocean-like theme. Draw some sharks, some water, etc. Or you can spell out something between all the banners you rope or tie together. Like "S-H-A-R-K-S-!" or "H-A-P-P-Y-S-H-A-R-K-W-E-E-K-!" Hang your banner around your party room, and let your guests enjoy the view and admire your creativity and art skills. Another part of the decorations could include blue streamers, as well as a funky photo back-drop. I made one but didn't use it- *le sigh.* Anyway, my photo idea was to make a giant shark head and cut it out, so the teeth look like they could be eating you. I'll upload a picture as soon as possible. For now, here is a picture of me eating the invitation I made (see below).

4. FOOD. There are so many options for food for your shark party. These include: Swedish fish, gummy worms, gummy sharks, Life Savers, donuts with red twizzlers on them (to make life savers!) I also got some blue Hawaiian Punch and poured into cups with one little Swedish fish- so it looks like the fish are swimming in water! My favorite food I did for my party was cupcakes with blue frosting and either one Swedish fish on top, OR half of an Oreo stuck in the top so it looks like a shark fin sticking out of the blue water. It was so awesome-looking, and so much fun to make! Here are my cupcakes:

5. Games and activities. There's always some fun stuff on the internet for your themed party. I found some fun shark stuff, too! Click here for some shark coloring pages from Discovery Kids. And click here for a free printable of SHARK BINGO! You can also try making some party hats or playing some "Pin the fin on the shark!" Go crazy with all the ideas!

Just look at all the stuff you can do for Shark Week! The list seems endless. It's not, however, because I'm ending it here- haha! But, there you have it- a nice list of shark-themed party stuff! ENJOY!

And have a great night!

xoxo, Clare

Awesome (Free!) Apps for the Budding Photographer

Good afternoon, all!

I hope your day is going well!

For today's post, I'd like to inform you of some awesome photography apps on the iPhone or on Android devices. Some of them you've heard of, or have and have had for forever, but others are fairly new and somewhat unheard of.

I've been using one of them like all day and I hate to admit it, but... I'm obsessed! It's so much fun! So I absolutely have to share. If you're into photography, these are must-have apps for you! So check 'em out:

1. Instagram. I mean, c'mon; how could I not include this on this list? If you don't have it, or you know nothing about it, here you go - though I personally think it's more for artsy or creative photos, you can document life through the lens of this app by taking a shot or uploading a photo from your camera roll. You can edit your photo in a number of ways: crop, rotate, brighten, create highlights and shadows. The most popular part of Instagram is that there are variety of different filters you can apply to your photos. These give an old-timey feel to your photos - whether you choose black & white, or a warmer color that makes your photo appear "vintage." Above are some of my Instagram photos that I had a lot of fun with. Instagram photos, after you've gone through the whole process of editing them, come out square, unlike the ones I've pictured here. For some reason when I made a collage of them, it decided to alter them a bit. Who knows why. Not a big deal, however. But now you know a bit about the program if you didn't know much about it before. If you don't follow me already on the app - my username is "clareelisabeth" and you can check out all of my other Instagram photos. Get onto the App or Google Play store and download Instagram right now!

2. Picstitch. This app is great for when you want to make a collage of photos and put them on Facebook or Instagram, or wherever else you like. You can create a collage by uploading a number of photos and placing them into an already set framework. So if you can't decide which picture to keep or show off, make a collage of 'em! It can be a collage of similar photos, or a random assortment. Here is my example, to the left. I took these four photos in my backyard and at Buckingham Pond. I thought they were beautiful and I wanted to get some good shots of all of them. To save room on my camera roll on my phone, I put them all together into one photo - this collage - and now they take up less space and I get to enjoy their beauty just as I would in each individual photo I took. There are a million photo collage apps out there, but I think Picstitch is by far the best. The others you can do a little bit more with, but for the simplicity - I'm sticking with this app!

3. Flipagram. If you're interested in making cool montage videos with your photos, set to your favorite music - this is the app for you! You can select up to as many photos as you want, set the speed of the video, choose a song, and save to your phone. It's awesome. And if you ever want to surprise a friend for a birthday or something - make them a cute little Flipagram and they'll love it - I guarantee it!

4. Studio. This is the app I've been obsessing and fawning over all day. I just found it and I am madly in love. You can add text (your own, quotes, typography, etc), frames, doodles, the list goes on and on! And the best part is - it's all free! Here are a few of the ones I've created just today (left and below). I am having so much freakin' fun with this app, and you will, too! Download it right now and get busy with your creative side! I like to bring out my creative side by using my favorite photos of people, nature, etc. and adding some bling - such as, inspirational quotes or something you can #hashtag on Instagram or Facebook. Go to town with it! I know you'll love it as much as I do!

 There are a million and one more apps out there for photographs - shooting, editing, etc., but these are my absolute favorites. And I love to share my thoughts with you all, so I thought this would make a good blog post for today. Since I've been having a lot of trouble coming up with some stuff to write about as of late.

So that's all for now, folks! Hope you enjoyed today's post. I'll see ya around!

xoxo, Clare

All You Need is Love

Hola, amigos!

I went to the movies last night with a couple of "friends" (just kidding, guys) and saw a fantastic film called Wish I Was Here. It stars Kate Hudson, Mandy Patinkin, and Zach Braff. And is also directed and written by Braff. It had all the feels. It was happy, sad, hysterical, tragic. I LOVED IT. So I highly recommend it. But the point is that this movie as well as one other significant factor is my inspiration for today's blog post. 

The other significant factor inspiring today's post is this: today is the one year anniversary of my grandfather's death. It has been a very rough year for my family, as you could have guessed. But we have all made it a year and on this day today, August 5, 2014, we remember him with fondness and happy hearts.

For today's post, I just want to say some really corny and cheesy things about life and love and all that jazz, and hope that you take it all in and live and breathe it everyday.

So here are some cliche tips on learning to love and live with an open heart and open mind (in no particular order):

- Find yourself. Discovering who you truly are is probably the biggest part of learning to love others and enjoy life. There are a million and one ways to do this. I will discuss these further on. But for now - think about who you are, what your purpose is, etc. This is some real deep stuff, so you should mentally prepare yourself first before delving into any of it. Try settling down with a cup of tea (or a glass of water if tea isn't your thing - but something soothing and healthy), and just sit in silence and think.

- Love yourself. Once you've figured out who you are, or even if you never figure out who you are - learn to love yourself just the way you are. You were created this way for a reason. You may never figure out what that reason is, but you've got to tell yourself that there is a reason and that you will probably have to search for it the rest of your life. That being said, you should use every ounce of your being to first learn to love yourself, before you can love life or love others.

- See the world. This may go hand-in-hand with your "finding yourself" adventure. If you don't have the time or the money, look at the next tip! But if you find yourself with the opportunity to travel, DO IT NOW! You only live once; you got to get out there and SEE things. And in doing so, you open your mind to new ideas and new cultures, and new people. Traveling the world, or the country, or the state, or even your own city can show you a multitude of amazing things that are out there in the world. Let the world take your breath away; have fun, enjoy it, be free.

- Escape through books or movies. Reading or watching something heartfelt and thoughtful can both uplift you and bring you down. But when you think about it, if it's a really good book or a really good movie, it will do both. So if you can't afford to travel right now - grab a book and get readin'. Find something interesting and well-written, and most of all - enjoy it. Your love for life and love and yourself and others will grow with your love for books and movies.

- Visit family and friends often. This ties in with my story about my grandfather. He lived down on Long Island with most of my dad's side of the family, while we live up here in Albany. It's a 4-hour trip and it was a pain in the neck to get down there from time to time. We rarely went when I grew old enough to get a job and start working. And to be honest, I completely regret the fact that I did not make an effort to go down there on my own when I could finally drive. I could have seen my family more often and I didn't. And now my grandfather is gone, and my family is a wreck. So this is my advice to you - go see your family more. Even if you live thousands of miles away, visit them. And if you can't do that: call them, e-mail them. Do whatever it takes to stay close with them. I would give anything to go back and time and be told this advice and just do it.

- Show some love. Tell someone you love them - someone you actually love. Be nice to strangers, do good deeds for others. There are so many things you can do to show and share the love. When you show others the example, you feel it deep down in your heart and in your soul. You get what you give. And love is, in my opinion, the greatest gift you could ever give or receive. Just like the Beatles once sang - "All you need is love. Love is all you need."




To my grandfather, I miss you everyday and I wish I could have been there for you more - especially towards the end. I'm sorry. But I think of and pray for you often. And I hope you hear my prayers.

Love you, Da. Hope you're partying it up up in Heaven. I won't be seeing you soon, but I'll be seeing ya.

Cheers.

xoxo, Clare

5 Movies So Bad, They're Good

Good evening / night, friends!

I hope you all had a wonderful day today! And if not, it's never too late to turn that frown upside down! And I know exactly how to help! Or at least I have some ideas for you to try tonight...

And those ideas include 5 amazingly bad movies. Have you ever seen a movie so so so bad that you could NOT stop watching? C'mon, I know you have. But if not... Welp, you're in luck! I got a whole list of 'em!

Most of the movies on this list are categorized as science fiction, though I will say this: I have seen so many other non-science fiction movies that I personally felt were absolutely horrific and I often ask myself, as well as others around me, "How the hell did this movie ever make it onto the big screen?"

Fear not, friends - this list is not a list of famous movies that made it big in Hollywood. Thank God. This list consists of a variety of movies made by the SyFy network and/or any other director or producer that has no idea what they're doing. So sit back, relax, read this list, and get online, or go to your nearest library or movie rental store (do they even have those anymore?), or download that sh*t illegally! (It'll be well worth the prison time).

For the record - these are in no particular order of worst or best or whichever. They are for whichever order you prefer but you may find the first two on TV a lot this whole upcoming week...

1. Sharknado. This is actually the reason I decided to write this article - because I watched this tonight. Like, an hour ago. And by golly, Miss Molly! It is thrilling, hilarious, scary, wonderful, and fantastic - ALL IN ONE. It is literally about a tornado full of sharks. How you ask? Like I would know. Ask the folks over at SyFy. They know how to make a bad movie while also making a ton of money and hype about it. But let me just say: be prepared for the greatest acting performance by Tara Reid. Yes, Tara Reid. Get out there and get ready to watch this epic movie just in time for Shark Week! (Disclaimer: This movie is totally unrelated to the Discovery Channel Shark Week... But just as good).


2. Sharknado 2: The Second One! Yup, you read right. That's the title of the second of this epic adventure series starring Miss Tara Reid. AND Vivica A. Fox. AND Billy Ray Cyrus. AND a million other Z-list celebs you will die laughing when you see in this movie. I also watched this tonight... (Shut up, I have a lot of time on my hands and I don't always know what to do with it - so obviously I watch movies like this for pure entertainment reasons). I gotta say - this one was even better than the first. So maybe if you're not feeling it, go for the second one. It's 100 times more epic, funny, silly, and stupid. So I mean, why not give it a try?

3. Anything with "SHARK" in the title. There are seriously at least half a dozen of these movies. So honestly, this blog post is giving you even more than you bargained for. You're welcome. Here are some awesome examples just to name a few: Mega Shark, Mega Shark Versus Giant Octopus, Mega Shark Versus Crocosaurus, Sharktopus, and Sharktopus Versus Pteracuda (Conan O'Brien makes a hilarious appearance in this last one). Just when you thought one couldn't mash enough sea creatures' and other animals' names together, you thought wrong. Have at it!

4. Mandrake. This was the first really bad I think I watched and can remember. It was HYSTERICAL. It is a legitimate movie with all the aspects of a parody movie. The opening scene will already have you dying with laughter. This monster lurks in a forest or jungle sort of thing and terrorizes tourists and scientists and natives alike. It brutally and viciously kills them with its long stems and roots. Oh, and the CGI is incredible. (Sarcasm, duh). Which, I should have mentioned the special effects and things for the above movies on this list - they are all horribly done, and obviously done with as little money or experience as possible. But it honestly makes it that much better. People seriously pay money to go see these movies when they put them in the theater, and it's great. I'm tellin' ya, this one though... A true keeper. Green screen, acting, all of it is just truly amazing. Please go check this one out right this very second. I've been wanting to re-watch it in all its glory all day long.

5. Killer Klowns From Outer Space. The title in itself explains a lot. I think this is an 80s movie, or maybe 90s. At least it seems that way. Who knows, maybe it's even in the 2000s. I really hope not. But it's about exactly what it says. Creepy as F*CK clowns that come from outer space to kill humans in the weirdest and most disturbing of ways. This may or may not give you nightmares. I know it did for me. I'm a pansy though when it comes to scary things. I also originally thought the Mandrake poster was scary -- and then I watched the movie and could not stop laughing at both myself and the movie. Anyway, Killer Klowns certainly makes it onto my list, even if it is #5.

There you have it, guys! Five horrific and God-awful movies that are just so bad, they're GREAT! Don't get me wrong, there are so many more out there that I have yet to even see. If you have any you can think of, please do inform me. I must look into them right away.

Before I go, I'd also like to mention a few bad movies I've been interested in watching for a while now, and I will let you know how they are once I watch them. These include: Triassic Attack (starring Emilia Clarke! - my favorite favorite favorite actress from the HBO TV series Game of Thrones!), Birdemic: Shock and Terror, Troll, and Troll 2. 

Have fun, peeps! Let me know what you think of them! G'night!

xoxo, Clare

De-Clutter Your Life in 3 Simple Steps

Hello all!

It's been a few days since I last wrote a post. No inspiration has really struck me until this afternoon.

The rest of this blog post will explain what it is that motivated me to write today! So read on, friends.
And enjoy!

My life has been a total wreck lately - and in a multitude of ways. I've literally been dirty, my room also literally dirty, and then just my mind is very messy as well (you could also say it's been dirty in a more adult and figurative sense - I am one to pull a "That's what she said" joke out of the blue, HA!)

So anyway - just this afternoon (about an hour ago maybe), I decided that I should clean my room. It was a hot mess. I have two beds in my bedroom (one that I don't even use - UGH, MOM!), and I tend to pile all on my clean laundry until it's one big heaping mound. And if I don't get around to it even then, my mother will come in and put it all away for me. Which I am very grateful for, but she puts things in strange places I feel like, and I can never find any piece of clothing I am looking for in particular. I have had enough of the volcano of clothing about to erupt and spread everywhere, so I figured putting it all away would do me some good. Not only that, but I emptied out all my drawers in my dresser, folded everything into neat piles and placed them into the drawers quite carefully. Now it looks wonderful.
Here is a picture right below this sentence. (Reppin' the Tri-City ValleyCats gear, obviously).

 So they're not perfectly folded, but you get the point. And now I feel so much better about cleaning it all up and folding it as nicely as possible and putting it all away.

The point of this post is to give you some ways or steps, or whatever you wish to call them, to clean up your surroundings, your appearance, and your mind!

So here they are - your 3 simple steps to de-cluttering your life:

1. De-clutter your space = de-clutter your mind. Just like me, cleaning your actual surroundings can make you feel a hell of a lot better. Usually when you see a whole messy bunch of food, stains, clothes, garbage all around you - you get stressed. And we can't have any of that. So, first things first - grab a broom, a mop, or use your hands (the best tools around!) and get to work. If you feel that you can't handle as big a project as this, grab a buddy too. Tell them you'll pay them in gum. Or hugs. Or whatever. Once you've got your space (your bedroom, your bathroom, your house, your car) all cleaned up, you're ready to take on the world!

2. Take a break. If you don't feel like cleaning or doing anything right now, start off by relaxing! Sleep in a little late, or take a nap. Take a hot bath or shower, wash your face with warm water. Meditate or pray. Do whatever it takes to just sit still and be alone and be quiet. We all need these breaks in our lives to just contemplate life in a desolate place in complete solitude and peace. Make the most of this time, and instead of thinking about the next thing you have to do, live in the moment and enjoy it! This step could also mean taking a vacation. Which we could all use. All the time.

3. Get rid of those bad eggs. I mean this literally and figuratively, of course. Literally - if you have bad eggs around... Throw those nasty things out. But seriously, this step really means to get rid of all those bad people in your life that are bringing you down or getting you into trouble or doing anything negative to you and your life whatsoever. We don't need Negative Nancy around us all the time. So get rid of that b*tch! She's no good for you. You got to know that by now. And if you don't know who these people are in your life by now, the next time you hang out with a friend or group of friends, be aware of what they say and do. If all they do is talk about themselves, or complain about everything, say goodbye. Surround yourself with happy and positive people as much as possible!

Well, that's all I have for now. I hope this was helpful. If you can think of anything else that helps YOU de-clutter your mind and your life, let me know! I'd love the input! Please + thank you!

Have a great rest of your day!

xoxo, Clare