Not Vanilla
dogs
Not Vanilla: Jenna Marbles
Alright, reader. It’s time. It’s time for me to admit my maybe outdated slight obsession with Jenna Marbles. Maybe you’re wondering if I’ve time traveled from 2007 (I mean, she is 2007 hot), but no, reader. I’ve been watching Jenna Marbles for the better part of the last ten years. She is a venerated figure […]
Buzzfeed
Not Vanilla: Quizzes that tell you things about yourself
Hey reader! As you may already be aware, I’ve recently been trying to find a new way to procrastinate and discovered the hallmark internet location for wasting time — Buzzfeed quizzes. I’m not dishing out my opinion on Buzzfeed as a company, but I must admit that their quizzes are delightfully useless. There are different […]
fashion
Not Vanilla: Jewelry City
Reader, recently I’ve been delving back into my collection of jewelry. There are few feelings as exciting as donning the perfect pair of statement earrings or a bold necklace. Since I’m not a certified “baller” (I don’t have oodles of spending money), I’ve become somewhat savvy at finding good jewelry at an affordable price, whether […]
Death Note
Not Vanilla: The dark side of our media
Hello, reader! I spent my winter break delving into new series. I started the anime “Death Note” and completed HBO’s “Sharp Objects.” Both shows are known for their particularly dark content and some nights, they significantly affected my mood. I haven’t finished “Death Note” yet, but the premise is that an exceptionally conniving teenage boy […]
Cultural Cues
Not Vanilla: The cultural cues of year’s end
Reader, you already know that 2018 is coming to a close. I hope your year has been wonderful, despite the world’s current turmoil. I’ve noticed a lot of cultural cues that surface at the end of every year. The obvious ones are the holidays, like New Years, Hanukkah, or Christmas. But there are other cultural […]
Daytime TV
Not Vanilla: At the crossroads of sass and serious
Reader, these past few weeks I have been watching some daytime TV. I cable access where I live. Instead, I’ve been watching clips on YouTube. Specifically, I started watching the long-running daytime talk show “The View.” I’m not sure what got me to start watching “The View,” but once I started, I couldn’t stop. “The […]
comic strips
Not Vanilla: A comical approach to expanding worldview
As a high-school underclassmen on the speech and debate team, I met a lot of older student deeply interested in geopolitical issues who prided themselves on being informed and having substantial opinions on the goings-on of the international world. One day, I was talking to one of those older students, and she introduced me to […]
Araina Grande
Not Vanilla: Songs to cure your pre-winter anxiety
Well, reader, this week we have finally been plunged into the cold darkness of a Rochester winter. With the encroachment of winter comes many beauties. The image of snow falling is truly gorgeous, and few things are as satisfying as fresh, even snow laid out on every surface. But, still, I find I need new […]
YouTube
Not Vanilla: On breakup videos
The other day I was browsing YouTube and proceeded to fall down what some call a “YouTube hole.” I started to watch breakup videos. For the unknowing reader, a breakup video is where a couple announces that they’ve broken up, explaining when the event occurred and usually why the split happened. These are couples that […]
travel
Not Vanilla: Traveling informed
Historically we’ve been fascinated by travel. You can see it in Western idealism of exploration — explorers risking their lives to seek new lands, to chart and record all the wonders they saw. Now, we know that in reality all the places that were, according to Western history, “discovered,” have long been inhabited by each […]
