“ASPIRING TEACHER SMACKS DOWN COMMON CORE IN A FEARLESS VIDEO RANT”

Dear Reader,

That is the name of the article I’m featured in.

I posted a video a few days ago in which I voiced some concerns and opinions about the american school system. Shortly after, I got an email from a very nice lady named Paula who just so happens to be the associate editor at PJ Media. She then wrote a sweet article about me and posted it on her website.

When I went to bed last night, it had been shared 121 times and had just over 700 views. I’ve yet to check what it’s at now.

But I was lowkey freaking out yesterday when I began to realize what was happening. Now, it’s not like this video is going to go viral or anything, but it makes me kind of worried how many people are sharing it and how many Facebook and Twitter timelines it might be popping up on now. As I’ve said before, my blog and YouTube channel are relatively private. I know that posting content online runs the risk of having the whole world as a potential audience, but I figured I would never have to worry about that.

So now knowing that my parents or distant relatives or people form my high school could find out that sometimes I talk to myself in front of a camera and upload it for the world to see… well that’s kind of freaky.

Secondly, this audience that is viewing the video is very different. It’s not made up of the friendly faces that greet me when I log onto WordPress. It’s made up of educated, experienced, and opinionated adults. Many of whom have taught for years and have their own relative discourse when approaching this subject.

And here I am, a kid from Ohio, who thought “man, the price of college is annoying. Common core is annoying. You know what? The whole grade system is annoying!” And then I made a video.

Needless to say, some people didn’t take kindly to my “weird examples” and “ignorant questions,” and some of the things they said were just mean. My favorite exchange was this:

“She’s an intelligent, articulate young woman. But she won’t last as a teacher. I give her maybe five years.”

And then:

“I don’t find her to be intelligent and articulate. I find her to be a snarky smart ass who should be researching answers to her questions rather than pontificating on things as if she has some kind of great insight when she’s utterly clueless.”

But I still stand by everything I said and I’m actually learning a lot from this ruthless comment section. In fact, the meanest person (in my opinion) actually answered a lot of my questions. Now, he managed to get a few zingers in between them, but my questions have been answered. Thanks, bud.

So I thought I’d share this with you all because, hey, the article is actually really nice and I feel very well represented. Besides, I made this video to start this conversation, so isn’t it good that people are talking?

Or maybe I should just be more careful what I wish for.

Have a great day y’all!

Sincerely,

Sammy

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AN OPEN LETTER TO THE AMERICAN SCHOOL SYSTEM

Dear Reader,

If you didn’t already know, I’m an education major. And a few weeks ago in class, I started thinking about all the things that annoy me about the american school system. As it turns out, there’s a lot.

So, I wrote an open letter, then I read it out loud in front of a camera, and forgot to upload it for a few weeks.

Oops.

But I’m sharing it now because sometimes it’s good to get things off your chest, you know? And let’s be honest–there’s plenty that can be fixed with our education system, and I’m not really seeing the progress I’m looking for.

So here’s a video of me reading a very abridged list of what worries me regarding the future of America and our school system. Enjoy if you want.

Sincerely,

Sammy

I HOPE YOU CHOOSE KINDNESS

Dear Reader,

This subject has been on my mind a lot recently. It all started with a quote I found a while back that has since sort of shaped my life.

“We’re all going to die, all of us, what a circus! That alone should make us love each other but it doesn’t. We are terrorized and flattened by trivialities, we are eaten up by nothing.” – Charles Bukowski

I then saw a vine of a guy who was talking about how the world we live in sees positivity and kindness and spreading love as weak.

Finally, Carrie Hope Fletcher came out with a video the other day:

And on that same day, my friend followed me on twitter. His bio: everyone has light and dark inside of them…what matters is the part we choose to act on. That’s who we really are.

I get it, universe. You obviously want me to write a blog post on this subject.

In all seriousness, though, I think this is something that never really gets talked about. Kind people are often taken advantage of, and people who are brutally honest are often praised. “Good for them, not being afraid to speak their mind,” we think. And “about time someone said what we were all thinking.”

But there’s a difference between being outspoken and being downright mean. Like Carrie mentioned, I’m not sure why we sometimes think the only way to give someone the truth is to hit them with it hard. I think this probably happened because people saw two choices in front of them: brutal honesty or sugar coating. But we have another choice: kindness. We can always choose kindness.

My friend’s bio really stood out to me because I had/have a bit of a mean streak. And it’s clear when you look at the differences between my sister (a true saint I kid you not) and myself when we were children. Sarah was constantly helping others, especially those who couldn’t help her in return. Even in elementary school, she would get paired up with kids who had special needs because the teachers knew she would treat them with the most kindness. She just emitted happiness and warmth. I mean, she was a hugger. I couldn’t have been more different.

Now, I like to think that I’m a fairly nice person. I’m certainly capable (we all are), but I don’t think I always choose kindness. I can think of too many situations where I chose to be brutally honest and I regret it. Maybe I thought I knew better, and I thought brutal honesty would be the best way to help someone see their faults, or learn a lesson. I don’t know, but the excuse isn’t important. What’s important is that I chose to act on the darkness, and that was the wrong choice. It’s always the wrong choice.

I’m realizing that more and more now, and I see people like Sarah not as fragile or weak, but as admirable. To choose kindness is to be strong–and mindful. In a world where it sometimes seems like everyone is just using everyone else and trying to tear each other down, it’s inspiring to see those who pick people up, just by second nature. It takes an incredible amount of strength to push aside feelings of hurt or anger or frustration and choose kindness. That’s what I’m going to really try to focus on doing from now on, and I urge everyone else to do the same.

Choose kindness, because why would you choose the opposite?

Sincerely,

Sammy

50 RANDOM FACTS ABOUT ME (again)

Dear Reader,

Something that a lot of YouTubers do is the “50 Random Facts Tag,” where they just list random things that their audience probably doesn’t know about them. And because I’m very new to YouTube and don’t have an audience yet, I figured this would be the best time to do it!

If this sounds familiar, you’re awesome. I posted a lyrical-type-essay back in January titled: 50 Facts About Me That You Didn’t Ask For. And don’t get me wrong, I’m really proud of it! But I just want it to be clear that these were made for very different purposes and, therefore, are very different. I wrote the essay for a class last year and spent a lot of time on it. And the video… well I just turned the camera on and went for it.

Which was not the best idea and I will hopefully never do again because editing that was awful. But this is the product and if you want to check it out, feel free!

I’m hoping the next thing I do has a bit more substance.

Sincerely,

Sammy

PS: ALSO, I changed the thumbnail today but for some reason it won’t change from the random one YouTube picked, so I apologize for the really embarrassing still image. But mostly to me. I’m apologizing to myself because I’m really embarrassed.

Have a great day everyone!

NEW FAVORITE YOUTUBER: THE CLAIRITY PROJECT

Dear Reader,

This is not the kind of post I was going to make today, but after discovering Claire, I had to.

I was planning on posting either another book review (I’ve finished both Warm Bodies and How to be Parisian Wherever You Are for the Empty Shelf challenge!) or my favorite albums from 2014. And then I was thinking of even doing a rant about quotes that turn infamous, but then I found Claire.

I don’t know who knows (I feel like I mention it all the time), but I’m writing a novel. And in that novel I have a character with cystic fibrosis, so, obviously I need to research it. I think it is so important to get everything right because it’s real. It’s not just a way to manipulate a story or tug on a reader’s heartstrings. My character is a girl whose personality develops much further than this diagnosis.

So, in the midst of my research, I came across this video: Perks of Going to the Hospital

Claire immediately starts off her video with a burst of energy and then babbles excitingly about all the cool things they have at the hospital–like every kind of junk food you can imagine, nurses who are obligated to your vent sessions, and so much free time to read.

So, I decided to explore her channel for a bit. It’s fairly new, 3 months old, but I’m obsessed. I’ve been watching her reviews of “Red Band Society,” a TV show on FOX that I love. It’s so interesting to hear her opinions on it, though–especially those about Dash, the cystic fibrosis patient on the show.

But the thing is, yes I find all of her videos fascinating because I’m learning so much more about the life of someone with CF, but that’s not why she’s my favorite. She’s an inspiration, but not because she’s happy despite it all. She’s an inspiration because she’s happy. And funny. And smart. And she makes amazing YouTube videos that I’ve been binge-watching.

She’s setting out to break down the barriers that people tend to have with people who are sick. Many people with CF are isolated (especially from others with the same disease) because their immune systems are weaker and there are so many infections that can spread, but she wants those connections. And I truly relate to that desire.

Well anyway, I just wanted to share her and her channel like I share any other book, song, music group, YouTube video, etc. that I adore.

Sincerely,

Sammy

PS. Song of the moment is Amy Winehouse’s Back to Black. For some reason, this song has been on repeat for days for me, but it’s so good. 

PPS. All of the aforementioned posts will be coming soon! (If anyone wanted to know)