On March 13^th I had the pleasure of attending The Word Alive’s NC show during their Dark Matter Tour.

Alongside The Word Alive were: HerEcho, A Boy Named Sue, Out Came the Wolves, and Fit For a King. One of my favorite things about these shows is how headlining bands will reach out to local talent to come out and be a part of the show. I’ve discovered so many amazing local bands through shows like this.

The show itself was incredible. Seeing The Word Alive perform old favorites like Life Cycles is an experience in itself, the crowd thrashing around and screaming the lyrics back at the band and feeding off of one another’s energy is amazing. The real treat was getting to experience the songs off TWA’s newest album Dark Matter days before it released.

Dark Matter is out now on iTunes and in stores. The album is bigger and bolder than those that came before it. TWA did an amazing job at re-vamping their sound to create something that was unique and different, but still had the charm that fans already knew and loved. Matt Good (of From First to Last) produced the album which is one of my favorite aspects of the album as someone who has loved Matt’s work for years. There’s something on album for everyone, from the heavy hitters to the soft spoken tracks.

A personal favorite of mine from the album is Grunge- this is one of the songs I got to preview during their show.

For those that missed out on The Word Alive during their Dark Matter tour, you’ll get the chance to see them all summer during the Vans Warped Tour! In the meantime, treat yourself to Dark Matter on iTunes.

Here’s a few shots from the show: 

Oh you know, just casually hanging with Tyler Smith *hair flip*

I recently got to try out the Fit Me Foundation from Maybelline thanks to Influenster and it’s quickly become a new favorite of mine.

Maybelline re-vamped their original Fit Me formula to create one that’s matte and poreless, which is awesome for those with oily/combination skin, like me. It comes in 40 different shades so you can find your perfect match- my shade is Classic Tan. You can find your fit by taking a quick quiz and letting Maybelline find your perfect pick. At first, I was afraid it would be too dark but it ended up working out.

I’ve been a fan of the Fit Me line for a while now, I’ve mentioned their Fit Me concealer on here before. Typically, I don’t wear foundation at all, unless it’s needed for a performance, but I wanted to give this a chance.

The formula was lightweight so it’s comfortable to wear. It has light to medium coverage but it’s buildable if you need more coverage in certain areas. It’s not a full matte finish, it leans more towards semi-matte- which is great because it gives a more natural finish.

Here’s a before and after look at the Fit Me foundation:

What I’m wearing on my face:

Maybelline Fit Me Foundation- Classic Tan

Maybelline Fit Me Concealer- Medium

Brows- Revlon Brow Pencil/Tinted Gel

Cheeks- Elf Blush Pallet

Elf Contour Kit

Maybelline Hi-Lite blush-Nude

Lips- Maybelline Color Whisper-Pin Up Peach

Overall, the foundation is fantastic. If you’re in the market for a drugstore foundation that will last and help diminish the look of pores, definitely give this a try.  

I’ve wanted to write about my experience at the FrnkIero and the Cellabration show in November for a while now but I just couldn’t find the right words. Even now as I type this, I’m wracking my brain trying to properly express just what I felt and it still doesn’t seem like I can perfectly explain it, but that’s okay.

“Happiness” is the first word that comes to mind when I think of that night- just pure, unadulterated happiness. Before that night I don’t think I had truly experienced happiness, at least not on that level. As I stood in the audience looking up at one of my heroes, singing along to my favorite song, I felt the tears that I had been holding back since he stepped foot on the stage finally fall. It was like after all these years, I was finally living. I had never felt more alive than I did in that moment.

As I’ve mentioned on here before, I’ve dealt with anxiety and depression my entire life. Some days are better than others but when it gets dark it’s hard to imagine finding the light again. Those dark moments just become a part of your daily life. No matter how big or small the issue might seem mental illness has a way of making everything seem like a life or death situation. A simple task like having to go to the administration building on campus made me feel like I was walking to the guillotine. Moments of having so much built up anxiety that you can’t feel parts of your body, breaking down in the middle of your room and clutching your chest, trying to pull yourself out of an anxiety attack because you’re in public and people will ask questions all become part of who you are. Then there are the moments the darkness consumes you and you feel numb, and that’s when it gets scary.

After feeling hopeless for so long it’s hard to imagine feeling anything else. It was like, “this is just how it is. This is my life and I just have to cope.” One of my proudest moments was when I finally found the strength to kick my addiction to self harm, but even after being clean for six years I still wasn’t living- just existing.

This brings us back to that faithful night in November when I saw Frank Iero, who’s been one of my biggest influences for years. Iero’s music has played a huge part in my life, inspiring me whenever I needed that extra spark when things got dark. After feeling hopeless for long, I never imagined something so amazing happening to me. The level of happiness I felt at that show, and even afterwards when I was able to look into his eyes and shake his hand, was unlike anything I had ever felt before. I just remember thinking, “wow, I’m so glad I kept myself alive to experience this.” That’s when it hit me.

I knew there was a reason I was keeping myself alive, I just hadn’t found it yet. It wasn’t until I was face to face with my hero that I realized it was happiness. I never imagined that I could feel so happy, and more importantly- happy to be alive. Afterwards, I was so inspired; I wanted more moments like that. For the first time in a while I was excited for the future, to see what more life has in store for me. I’m so glad I didn’t end things when I wanted to because then I would have never been able to experience what was one of the happiest days of my life. Even now, months after the show I’m still inspired to keep myself alive to create more moments like that.

There’s a collection of moments that I hold near and dear to my heart that give me hope to keep on living, this show is at the top of the list. Even when mental illness rears its ugly head, I’m reminded of happy times and the happiness that’s yet to come. Moments like seeing my heroes perform, down to small victories like pulling myself out of bed in the morning. I knew that finally seeing Frank Iero would be special but I had no idea just how it would change my life. The phrase “think happy thoughts” that I have inked onto my wrist has new meaning. It reinforced just how important it is to keep yourself alive, because even when it feels like all hope is lost there’s so much more beauty in the world and you should be alive to experience it.

This doesn’t even begin to describe just how grateful I am for Frank and how he continuously inspires me. So I’ll end with these two-

Thank You.