Short Post About Being Happy

Helloo!

I just watched a documentary on Netflix about happiness. It showed us a day in the life of people from all social levels all over the world. No matter how wealthy or how well they lived, a close knit group of family and friends highly impacted the happiness of their life. This was amazing to me.

It also talked about the other aspects that contribute to happiness.

They say that 50% of your happiness is genetic, but only 10% comes from things that may "just happen", good or bad (i.e. winning the lottery, natural disasters, meeting a celebrity, becoming ill, etc.) While that's surprising, what's even more surprising is that 40% comes from intentional behaviors, meaning things you do to boost your mood. So if going for walks makes you happy, do it. It can increase your happiness by up to 40%. If you hate your job, maybe it's time to quit. It could be making you 40% less happy.

Just a thought...

xoxo, Briana

My Life Is Messier Than My Room

For the last month or two, I've been letting everything I need to do to get completely out of hand. From the state of my bedroom to my classes, it's clear I have gotten nothing done in quite sometime. 

I've fallen behind in the majority of my classes, I've even decided I need to drop one. After a couple panic attacks this week I decided I need to clean up my life... And my bedoom (seriously you should see this place, well maybe you shouldn't, it's disgusting). 

I sat down and figured out what I need to get done as far as school to catch up. That's my priority. I started working on that. 

This weekend I'm also gonna clean up my diet too. Junk food only clutters my mind even more and keeps me from getting anything done. 

Once I get my room completely cleaned, I'll start replacing the furniture and painting the walls. Having a new fresh place to work will probably help me stay motivated. 

Hopefully by the end of the weekend I can catch up and get other things sorted out. Maybe Sunday I can do something fun to keep my mind off of it. Wish me luck!

xoxo, Briana

Here's To 2013

"This year I've learned that happiness is as simple as tucking the past into its own box and moving on. I've learned that the people whoa re here to stay will make an effort to be there. I've learned that some people will never see the good in you, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't let it show. I've learned that when you find something that makes you light up you should hold onto it. This year I've grown up. I'm closer to 20 than to 10. There isn't room for blame anymore. It's all on me. My life is my own now. I walked out of this year completely different from when I walked in... Goodbye 2013."

Here's a note I wrote on my phone on the morning of the final day of 2013.

Personally, I think I worded it perfectly. If I could summarize my feelings about the last year of my life it would be exactly that. 

Here's some of my favorite things: TV shows, movies, randoms, etc.

My favorite movies of the year were:

• The Breakfast Club (surprise, surprise)
  
• Lilo and Stitch

• Frozen (such an amazing movie, watch it if you haven't yet--it completely redefines true love)

The TV shows that took over my life were:

• The Vampire Diaries & the Originals (oh my sweet Lord, this show is so amazing, I have actually had to sit and have a cry simply because I will never be a vampire.. Or be as attractive as any of the cast)

• The Carrie Diaries (just the normal life of Carrie Bradshaw as a teenager, the fact that it took place in the 80s gave it a little bit of a twist)

• Gossip Girl (be prepared for an emotional rollercoaster)

Now here are some randoms:

• For some stranger reason, this summer I was obsessed with battleship... I don't know why. Don't ask.
• Tumblr. I believe that's all I need to say.
• My new car, it's my baby and I love it so much.
  

• My friends, cousins, and siblings. I've spent so much time with the people I love this year and I'm so grateful to have that time.
  

• My pets, this year, in addition to my beagle that we've had for 3 years now, we got another dog, Timmy. He's some sort of terrier mix if you're wondering.
  
  
  
  
• LGLG. This year I've been into my faith a lot more than I have in previous years. Since my sophomore retreat, I've been on a Jesus High.

Along with the material things that came with 2013, like getting a car and switching schools, I've really grown up. 

I think I've really become a new person. I've completely matured in the second half of the year. My outlook on life is brand new and I'm proud of that. I'm proud of who I am.

Here's some quotes that really affected me throughout 2013.

• "Aut viam inveniam aut facium"--it translates to "I will either find a way or make one."
• "In the end people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel."--Maya Angelou
• "If the whole world was blind who would you impress?"
• "Kindness is a language the deaf can hear and the blind can see"--Mark Twain
• "Ah yes. The past can hurt, but the way I see it you can run from it or learn from it."--The Lion King
• "The happiness of your life depends on the quality of your thoughts"--Marcus Aurelius 

xoxo, Briana

Here's To Hellos.

Hello Darlings,

I’m Briana. I’m a sixteen year old girl from South Florida who has no idea what she wants. Right now my job is to figure it all out—easier said than done. Junior year is a crucial time in my life to decide what I’ll be, who I’ll be. This year, in 2014, I wanted to document my life and record the ups and downs. I’m the type of person that thinks every memory is valuable—even the bad ones, so I’m really excited to start keeping track of all the new things that I’ll experience in the next year (let’s hope I can keep this up all year).

I figured a good way to start out this blog would be to tell you some things about myself that you would never know if you never met me.

• I value relationships so much. Friends and family mean the world to me.
• I am an extremely forgiving person. I have learned that there’s no use boiling your blood for something that isn’t worth it (in the words of a good friend), so I forgive, but never forget. This way, I can be happy without allowing anyone to hurt my twice.
• I am constantly looking for meaning in music. Music helps me so much in my daily life.
• I believe that happiness is completely up to you. If you want to be happy, be. Happy thoughts=happy life.
• I like to laugh at myself.
• I consider myself a funny person.
• I am extremely uncoordinated. From throwing a ball to dancing, I just can’t.
• I live by quotes that inspire me. (You’ll probably be seeing tons throughout many of my future blog posts)
• I love writing, but I’m not sure if I’m any good.
• I hate doing things alone. I am very much extroverted so I like doing things with the company of other people.
• I’m completing my junior year of high school online.
• The things I am extremely good at are braiding hair and caring about people—that’s why I can’t wait to be mommy.
• I don’t like change. I like consistency.
• Even though I haven’t been so blessed so far in life, I hope I get the chance to travel.
• I believe in God.
• My motto in life is: “love all, trust few, do wrong to no one”-William Shakespeare, All’s Well That Ends Well

Well, I hope I didn’t bore you too much. If you want to hear more about my fairly average life keep checking back for more posts.

xoxo, Briana