One Sec, I'm Spiraling

I love a good rom-com. They are comfortable, easy to follow, and leave viewers smitten. I never understood the hate for this film genre. Many people—especially men—refer to these movies as “chick flicks,” yet, no matter where I am in life, I will forever choose a “chick flick” over a suspenseful war movie. Sorry, that’s just my opinion. If I have to sit through Inglorious Basterds (2009) or Oppenheimer (2023) again I think I will disintegrate into dust. I’m not here to argue that one genre is better than another. Everyone enjoys their own thing, and for decades we’ve seen how women are drawn to rom-coms while men gravitate toward war films. My point this week is simple: rom-coms are vital for young women. I remember watching my first rom-com when I was five or six, eyes glued to the box TV in our living room. See, back in my day, streaming services weren’t widely used, so hallelujah for cable TV. My brother and I only ever flipped between Disney Channel, Cartoon Network, and Nickelod...

I find the online world fascinating. But hear me out… fascinating can be a negative thing. I am happy that a lot of my childhood memories don’t revolve around the internet, and I feel for kids who don’t get to experience that nowadays because an iPad is shoved in their face when they begin to cry in public. With over a decade of digital experiences, I find it appalling that some parents are letting their children have freedom on the internet at such a young age. We’ve already begun to see the effects of it, such as little kids being influenced to wear makeup, use skin products that will cause more harm than benefits, and wear clothing that shows off their ‘figure,’ all because of what we’re doing. The media is constantly criticizing celebrities’ bodies and faces, telling young people that they should look a certain way. When will it stop? I made a TikTok about how much I loathe comments about my body. Not because I’m insecure, but because each remark has that slight undertone of disgus...

I saw a TikTok a few months ago of an influencer promoting an AI tool. Normally, I skip these videos, but something striking caught my attention. It has since stuck with me to this day, and I could never forgive myself if I don’t talk about this horrific issue. This influencer, whose account was geared toward BookTok (a space to recommend and talk about books of any kind), claimed that she had read over 100 books that week. I thought to myself ‘okay, just clickbaiting, no big deal.’ Boy… was I WRONG. Artificial Intelligence has become a safety net for millions of people. Individuals belonging to different generations have turned to AI tools like ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot to edit their essay, solve a math problem, create a short presentation about a topic, or provide talking points to touch on during a business meeting. However, over time, its use began to expand outside of school and work. People used it to create a healthy grocery list for the week, or to receive movie recommendat...

You knew this one was coming, didn’t you? I originally wanted to share my thoughts on the show Gilmore Girls around September 22nd, the first day of fall. The dilemma I ran into though was the fact that I wasn’t finished watching. But, I am proud to say I finally finished every season of this show for the first time. Gilmore Girls is a drama set in the fictional town Stars Hollow, Connecticut. The story explores the lives of Lorelai Gilmore and her daughter, Rory. The characters are eccentric and often face difficulties in work, school, family, friends, and coffee. Yes, coffee. Apparently, these girls can never have too much coffee. I decided to watch this show because of how it reemerges in the fall season of each year. Gilmore Girls is one of the most re-watched tv shows on Netflix, as stated on the description the service provides. After completing the story, I can understand why. The entire show has these undeniable fall vibes that are comforting. It feels like being wrapped in a...