5 Ways to Efficiently Use Google Drive

I've used Google Drive for several years now and I still learn new ways to use this service. I thought I'd share with you a couple ways you can maximize your Drive use without paying to upgrade. While $1.99 a month really isn't that much, when you're a college student that really adds up.

1. Your Free Storage
Google Drive comes with 15GB of free storage - so bear that in mind when uploading your files. As a comparison, iCloud and Dropbox offer 5GB of free storage - so really Google is the best deal here.

2. Photos Don't Count (Well almost)
All photos under 2048x2048px don't count for your storage. Which means, you could have 100GB worth of photos on a 15GB Drive account - and when they are under that size they count for nothing. Fantastic, right? But wait, there's more.

3. Docs Don't Count Either
That's right. Any Google Doc, Sheet or Slide file you create in Drive won't count against your storage. Who needs MS Word?

4. Play Videos From Your Drive Account
Upload alot of vids to Google Drive? It's a pain in the neck to re-download - so stream them on your computer straight from your Drive webpage

5. Offline Access
Need to work on Docs without internet? No problem - download the Google Drive app or simply enable "offline access" in the Drive settings.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask! There's probably stuff I've missed.

Notes on the Last Day at the Office

I finished my schoolwork in late March this year. I was excited to be done, after all, it was the end of my high school days. I then began looking for work. (Mistake #1 - Don't wait until you are done with school before looking for a job) My art teacher had said that there was this Christian arts and music camp that was hiring for the summer. So I applied there first, kind of assuming I would get to work there since my teacher recommended me and said that I had the job. I didn't apply anywhere else and April came and was passing fast. I wasn't hearing back from the camp, so my mom told me to apply other places. Still pretty confident that I had the camp job landed, I applied to a local restaurant and Giant.

Well today ends my days working my office job. I just got back from a dentist appointment (those are fun), and thought I'd do a little post about my work experience while I have the time. I don't know how much time I'll have to blog while I'm at college, hopefully at least once a week.

I've learned a lot working at this office. I want to share the story of how I got this job, because I feel it marked an important checkpoint in my life about trusting God.


It was late April when I finally heard back from the camp. I wasn't hired due to a lack of space for more positions, they simply had filled everything with returning staff. This was a shock and a huge disappointment - I was really looking forward to working at the camp, and thought I had my summer planned out. But God had other plans for me.

Frantically I applied to around 20 other places, freaking out. I needed money for college, and the Penn State students would be taking all the jobs soon. I applied at Giant again, who I later called and they had apparently "lost" my application.

By the second week of May, I had given up. As a last hope, I applied to Giant again. They called me in less than 5 hours of me submitting my application and wanted to schedule an interview. I was so incredibly happy and thankful - I thought I was on Cloud 9. I got the job at Giant, and thought that my life was perfect (well nearly).
My mom then called me one day the next week after I started at Giant and said that a family friend had found a place for me at an office of a company that someone in our church owns. I was hesitant at first - I had the Giant job and I wanted to keep it. I then realized that I needed money - so I interviewed and got the internship position there. I really wanted to keep Giant, so I switched my availability with them to nights, hence why I have two jobs and work 12-15 hour days and nearly 60 hours a week.

But you see, I was so worried about finding a job when God was in control the whole time. He had a bigger picture in mind, while I only focused on the fact I wasn't working at the camp I wanted to. I was over-blessed. I wanted a job really bad - I needed a job really bad - and I got two. Too much job.

Retail Adventures

This week is my last week working both my jobs - I'm going to come back and work once every 28 days (to stay on the payroll) and breaks at Giant, however. Working retail has been an experience, and I'm glad I did it - I've learned a lot of life skills.

Last night I had some adventures. It was already a weird night - I had been doing miscellaneous stuff since I arrived for my shift. I was hired as a cashier, but when the one manager Damien is working, he has me do all kinds of stuff. Which I don't really mind - he's my favorite manager anyways - but it can be a lot of work. 

(Giant literally called me while I was writing this post and asked me to come in two hours early...)

Our closing register wasn't working correctly last night - which ended up being a pain in the neck since Damien had to nag the tech people for permission to open another register's till (You're not supposed to after 10:30, but he had no choice - the register wasn't taking any card payments correctly).

There's a girl my manager that I can't stand - she flirts with him and annoys me constantly. I don't show that I don't like her, I'm actually pretty nice - but she hates me because Damien talks to me more. (which is stupid since she's still sixteen and he's 20) She tells me to shut up, won't bag for me even though it's her job, etc. So she was there last night causing all sorts of problems by hitting the manager call button and laughing as my manager came over to see who needs help. 

The highlight of the night was the homeless guy who we got a cab for. Which cost me 20 bucks I really couldn't afford. I'll admit, a small part of me wanted to say no to helping him out. But hey, I'm doing this for a good cause, it's what Jesus would have done, and if I'm short money He will provide me with what I need - He always has. So I came to peace with it and was glad I was able to help since no one else had any money apparently.

Anyways, those were my adventures in retail. I know, not really all that exciting. But hey, I had nothing else to blog about today.

Guitar Awesome That Is Sungha Jung

Well here goes another music post...

A few months ago I discovered a young guitar player named Sungha Jung. (Actually my mom had mentioned him to me earlier - I just hadn't listened to any of his stuff until recently.) Anyway, he is fantastic - I think he's 16 or 17 and he is just a genius at finger picking guitar. I know alot of people aren't really into this kind of music, but since I play guitar I thought it was extremely cool. Here's one of my favorites. You really have to just watch and listen to see what I mean - it's not enough to explain.

I wish I could play like this...enjoy.

Earl and Fairy (Review)

I decided to watch this anime after seeing that it has similarities to the movie Howl's Moving Castle. I'm a HUGE fan of British drama and Victorian Era stories, so I had high hopes for this anime.

I have to admit after the first episode I wasn't very impressed. The art wasn't fantastic and it was kind of sloppy. However I decided to give it another chance, and fell in love with Lydia and the story line. The character development through this series is excellent, especially with Edgar, and I was really impressed by episode 12. I also loved the music, it was similar to the soundtrack of a movie.





I think this would probably be one of my favorites if it weren't for the romantically odd ending. The plot was somewhat resolved, but I felt like the relationship between Edgar and Lydia wasn't completed. It really ruined how I felt about the anime overall. I'm a big romantic, so others might not mind so much.

The show could easily have gotten another season with it's excellent story, but due to the artwork those possibilities were snuffed pretty quickly.

Pre-College Stress

Recently I have discovered the forest...nay the jungle... that is packing for college. Like, what exactly do you need? What should you leave at home? Will I really need a microwave...or a bath robe? Do I need food in my dorm or should I just take full advantage of the expensive dining plan? I don't know.

Since my college is only approximately 25 minutes away from campus, I decided that I really don't need to bring a ton of stuff. If I am missing something, my mom can bring it over or I can get it or whatever. Less is more in this sense, I suppose.

Getting what I need for college has been stressing me out a little because I've been at work a ton and haven't been able to do much shopping. Hopefully since this is my last week working my two jobs, I'll have a bunch of time next week.

I still need to finish my Fundamentals of Music Theory class and read the common reading book Silver Like Dust. Let's add those to the pile of things I need to get done next week. Ah college life. I can feel its pressure already.

No Music No Life

Ok yeah, I made a really bad anime pun.

 (This in itself is a pun because its a music anime hahahahahahaha)
Uta no Prince Sama

I really love discovering new music. It's like opening a present. You find this random song, and you're just like WOW THIS IS AMAZING and then you proceed to look up every recording ever made by the artist on the internet. But even when you listen to all of their music, the one song you found is still WAY better than all the others.

Music gives me life. To me, when worshiping God together with other Christians, it's the music that leaves the biggest impact on me. I've always loved music more than anything else. It's hard for me to be at work and resist the urge to sing "Titanium" at the top of my voice while bagging groceries.

Anyway, so I found this singer/songwriter called Jason Chen (I mentioned him in my previous post) and his songs are so fantastic (well most of them) and I spent all Sunday afternoon listening to him while cleaning my room. Here's a music video of the best one (in my opinion):

You can download his music for free on Itvemn...but I'm not sure if it's legal so I used iTunes. But his songs are on Spotify as well.

Well I just wanted to share that little random part of my life.

Liebster Award

 

Thanks for the Liebster Award nomination, Ely! So the rules:

• 
  
• thank and link back to the one who tagged you
• list 11 facts about yourself
• answer the eleven questions asked by the blogger who nominated you
• nominate 11 other bloggers who have less than 200 followers (no tag-backsies)
• ask them 11 questions

11 Facts:

1. I'm the oldest of 6 
2. I love Shakespeare (Much Ado About Nothing is my favorite)
3. My favorite Singer/Songwriter is currently Jason Chen -->
4. I usually can't stand abstract art
5. Rap is evil
6. I'm an introvert but I loved NYC
7. I could live on Yakisoba and Pocky
8. My college dorm supplies are all the same two colors, blue and purple (even the mac)
9. I wish I wore glasses so people would believe I'm a nerd
10. I stopped liking soda when I turned 17 or 18
11. I'm allergic to milk (so no Starbucks frappaccinos ;( )

11 Questions from Ely:

1. do you think owls are over-rated or do you think they're cute?
Owls are fantastic, are you kidding me

2. Sunflowers or roses?
Roses

3. Do you wear your watch on your right wrist or your left?
I don't wear a watch, but when I do, it's on my left

4. Do you make friends easier with guys or girls?
Guys...I don't know why...

5. Do you like watching movies at the theatre or at home on your couch better?
Depends. If its a Doctor Who thing, I want to see it in the theater. But mostly at home is better.


6. Middle name?
Elizabeth

7. Are you a fan of impromptu dance parties?
Depends on the situation. I can't dance.

8. What color are your bedsheets?
Pink...

9. pen or pencil?
Pencils FTW Pens are evil

10. favourite band/artist?
Celtic Thunder's my favorite band, and my favorite songwriter is Jason Chen ^



11. Which do you like better--Snoopy or Linus from Charlie Brown?
Linus, I think, because he plays the piano

Alright, there you have it! Unfortunately I don't know a lot of other bloggers, so I'm not tagging anyone :(

Hanasakeru Seishounen (Review)

I have to admit, this anime did not really hold my interest when I started watching it. However, it has some surprising jewels, and I grew to love it.







Story 8/10
Being somewhat of a harem anime, I had low expectations for any plot whatsoever. However, this story is full of twists and turns, and while the ultimate end may seem somewhat predictable, the means we intriguing and surprising at times. Hanasakeru Seishounen is a long anime, but the story was played out well over all 39 episodes.

Art 7/10
The art style is satisfactory, but not spectacular. However, I liked the unique design of each character, and it gave the anime overall interest. There are some actions scenes I thought were done very well.

Sound 6/10
The soundtrack is nothing spectacular, but not bad. It wouldn't be music I would ever want to hear again, however. The opening song didn't really seem to fit the anime I thought.

Character 8/10
The characters are well developed by the end of the anime. I thought everyone found their place. I especially found the antagonist's personality and character development extremely interesting. The main character herself and her childhood friend could have used a little more development, but overall it was pretty good.

Enjoyment 7/10
I enjoyed it for the most part. It was an interesting story, and even though it seemed to move slowly, I found the plot intriguing. The ending was extremely satisfactory for me.

Overall 8/10
If you like romance animes with good endings and a tad of action and well developed characters, then you will love this anime. It is worth your time, and actually made me cry at different times.

The Christian Anime Fan

I've read a lot of articles online that have discussed this controversial topic. I know Christians who are anime fans, and I myself watch a good bit of anime and enjoy it. But I have gotten looks and words from other Christians who feel this isn't in line with the scriptures. So I wanted to write about this confusing topic. Should a Christian watch anime?

Now a lot of anime is not appropriate and does not glorify God. But there are a lot of good quality ones that have important moral messages and are just plain fun. If you're a parent, then it really is just what you feel comfortable letting your child watch. There are websites such as http://www.christiananime.net/ that can help you understand the content in an anime before watching it.

TWWK at Beneath the Tangles writes:

"Many people probably wonder how I can hold these two things, Christian faith and anime, together with any integrity. And I have to admit: it’s not always easy. Then again, nothing is easy when you’re dealing with stories, no matter where they come from or who tells them: my faith teaches that we’re fallen, after all. And stories form the way we look at the world, and the ones we identify with closest become part of our very identities. We have to know whose story is guiding our lives." 

If you are having doubts about whether you are doing what is right, ask yourself the following questions:
1. Is What I Am Watching Glorifying God?
2. How Am I Benefiting From Watching This?
3. What Kind of Impact is this Having on My Life?

1. Is What I Am Watching Glorifying God?
I realize that there are a lot of different opinions when it comes to what glorifies God and what does not. But it comes down to this: If you feel guilty about it, or feel that Jesus wouldn't approve of what you are watching, don't watch it.

2. How Am I Benefiting From Watching This?
There can be a lot of benefits from watching anime. However, this also comes with a negative side. For example, while Ouran High School Host Club may have a lot of good morals about friendship and being yourself, the inappropriate situations/language/themes pretty much overshadow that. I'm not saying that anime should be always educational and never have any negative themes, but it there should be a significantly more amount of positive, upright themes than the negative.

3. What Kind of Impact is this Having on My Life?
Sometimes we get pretty obsessed with stuff. For me, this is a constant struggle, and I have to constantly remind myself of what is most important. If you can't think about anything else, you should stop. (I mean, this applies to everything) When what you are watching starts to take over everything about you, it's unhealthy. As TWWK said, we have to know whose story is guiding our lives. As Christians, we are to follow God - we must keep this is mind in everything we do/watch.

Well I hope this was helpful. Please realize that these are all my personal opinions and I apologize if it hurt anyone's feelings.

Life Hurts

Today I received some news about a family situation that could possibly change me and my sisters life completely. Honestly, I don't know what to do anymore. There is such a high level of stress on me right now that I'm frankly surprised I'm not sick. I already have two jobs, college prep and finances, and a class to worry about and now with this family problem added I'm not sure what's going to happen. I don't understand what God is doing and I'm just so very tired of life and all this pressure I'm under. It keeps building and building like a tidal wave and I know its going to crash soon. I know adulthood comes with responsibility, but I'm under more pressure than an average 40 year old adult.

I'm tired of being told I'm too wound up. People should stop and think about why I would seem that way instead of accusing me of being paranoid and defensive. They have no idea what I'm going through or what I've already went through - I just don't want to hear it anymore. Yes I know I'm no fun...deal with it - I've suffered through mental and emotional abuse for all of my childhood I'm not just going to pretend everything is fine. I don't like living disorganized and unplanned and I'm tired of being made to feel guilty for being that way. Like, excuse me for acting like a mature adult.

And stop making me feel stupid because I don't get your oh-so-funny jokes. I happen to be working and thinking about important things, so I apologize I don't understand your humor or see hilarity in my everyday life. I think about things in a more realistic and serious light - that does not mean I'm stupid or slow.

So what, I didn't go to the beach with my family this year. Sure, I understand your concern, but that was my decision, and you have no idea what my financial situation is like. Don't you think it was already hard enough for me to make that decision? Double questioning me about it makes me feel depressed and wonder if I made the right choice. Thanks, but I feel bad enough about it already.

No, I don't know what I'm going to do with my piano degree. I don't need to know what I'm going to be doing in June of 2018 while its still August of 2014. I have four years to decide that. Thanks again, random concerned person, for wondering about my life goals, but frankly it's none of your business. After all, it's my life and my tuition bill. And no, I'm not commuting, yes I know it's cheaper - but that is also none of your business.

Please stop complaining about your parents. I don't want to hear how your dad wouldn't take you to a movie on the night you wanted or your mom forgot to pick you up the food you wanted at the grocery store. At least you have a dad who isn't a complete jerk, and how about helping your mother out once and a while instead of complaining about her? I understand that everyone has their own parent problems, but those kind of things aren't even issues. It's rude to talk about your parents that way.

Ok, I'm done. I just wanted to write that out somewhere.

I Meet People

As I mentioned in the last post, meeting people is not one of my favorite things. I don't socialize very well and try to avoid socializing situations because I will replay moments where I believe I've done something embarrassing forever and ever in my head afterwards. Kind of a self-torture in a way. As I look on this now, a lot of those moments probably didn't matter to anyone else anyway and honestly, I was being kind of stupid. 

Anyway, I also said in the last post that working at Giant has helped grow my socializing skills. I wanted to expand on this, hence this post. I used to be very afraid to even say hello to strangers, make eye contact, or even smile. Now as a cashier, this is sort of required, and I quickly realized within the first 5 minutes of my first shift that I was going to have to get used to talking to people. I thought this would take me a while to get over, but in fact, it only took a couple of months. 

Now, putting aside the fact that every time I go into Giant I feel this adrenaline and a strong urge to smile and say hi to every stranger I see, I am now not afraid to talk to people anymore. I still haven't gotten over my fear of guys...That one has always been harder, and hopefully it will change at college. But I've changed, and my personality has changed a little for the better. (I think)

Alright, Let's Get Caught Up Part II

Ok, so in my last post I was talking about my retail job at Giant food stores. Good ole retail life. Now I said that my other job was an office one - its' not as boring as it sounds. I do a lot of cool stuff. Really.

Actually I do a mix of social media monitoring, web design, graphic design, and other related miscellaneous stuff. This week I just finished created 6 ebooks for my company to go up on one of the websites. It's actually really cool and it's what led me to my decision to double major in college.

I have decided to double major in Piano and Computer and Information Sciences with a Concentration in Web Management. I know, I know, two vastly different subjects. But hey, I love piano, and I'm really awesome with computers, so why not? (I really should do a whole post on how I practically live the Family Tech Guy Meme, but that can wait)

To be completely honest, college is freaking me out. It's going to be a lot of responsibility. And when I say that, I'm not talking about being on my own - I'm used to that, plus I'm an introvert (us introverts thrive on being alone). It's more the social and financial aspects for me. I've never been good communicating with other people (especially guys), and the prospect of meeting so many new people is really kind of scary. Also, getting school finances has been extremely difficult. But it's in God's hands and I will survive.

On a more happy note, I got a macbook pro! It is fantastic and amazing AND I sold my soul to Apple....more like just my bank account. But I think it was worth it. So long, Microsoft.

Welp that's all for this one, I'll try to post mini updates like this throughout the rest of this week. I post spastically, so, yeah.

Alright, Let's Get Caught Up Part I

Hi people!
So, I haven't been able to post much due to the fact that my life is really busy right now. But I thought I would give you all an update on what I've been doing. Wow, I can't believe I haven't posted since March.

OK, so I graduated High School. (That's something, right) - Graduation was interesting, since I was cyber schooled, I met my fellow class men for the first time. Kind of weird, but it was actually fun. I had my graduation party the same day, and that was amazing.

I now have two jobs. One, I work at Giant Food Stores, and the other is an office job where I do cool computer stuff and all that jazz. To be honest working both these jobs at the same time is really stressing me out and I hope I don't have to do the same thing next summer. But college is expensive, so I do what I want to do.

Ah the retail life...Working a shift at Giant can be either really fun or really annoying and long. It really is only one extreme or the other. There's people you get along with really well, and then there's the people who you can't stand. Honestly I think it's really good experience, and for the most part it can be kinda fun. But the other employees really make or break it.

There's a couple of guys that really like to give me a hard time, which pushes me way out of my comfort zone considering I'm really terrible talking to guys in general. But it's getting me ready for college life, so it's good.

Anyways there's part 1...I'll post again later.