Favorites of 2016

So... it's been a little while. I've been doing twenty million different things and none of them ended up being this blog. But, I've always done rankings of my favorite things each year, and I wanted to keep that trend alive. That being said, after evaluating all the things that I ranked last year, I found myself at a bit of an impasse.

Last year, I ranked my overall favorite movies, musicians, albums, songs, TV shows, YouTubers, and BookTubers as well as my favorite albums and songs of 2015. When I looked back, I realized that my overall/all-time favorites haven't changed much if at all, so it seemed a bit ridiculous to re-rank everything. As for the favorites of the year, I realized that in my iTunes library, I only have 3 CDs from 2016 in my iTunes. And while I liked them, it didn't feel like enough to merit a whole ranking. And then I had to consider the new songs of 2016 and I couldn't even think of any off the top of my head. So, I'm just combining the two into one post and adding other favorites of the year into the mix.

Favorite New TV Show of 2016:

Stranger Things

This may be the most obvious answer ever because everyone loved Stranger Things, but I got SO obsessed. It was so good and I watched the entirety of the show in a day. After watching the first episode, I got hooked and watched the entirety of the show without doing anything else in between. I watch a ton of reality shows and very few scripted shows but this one completely stole my heart and I ended up watching it another two times over the following weeks and months. 

Despite the fact that there were new seasons of some of my favorite shows like Project Runway, Rupaul's Drag Race, and Big Brother, Stranger Things was the show that really grabbed me this year. 

Favorite New CD of 2016:

A Pentatonix Christmas by Pentatonix

Like I said earlier in the post, there wasn't really very much competition for the best CD of the year, but as always, Pentatonix was incredibly impressive. I actually didn't jump on this immediately upon its release, because I don't really listen to a bunch of Christmas music. However, once I started listening to it, I couldn't stop. It was so good! The standouts for me are their cover of Kanye's song, Coldest Winter, their cover of Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays by NSYNC, and their version of Up on the Housetop. However, the entire CD is really great. And those three songs are also probably my favorite songs of the year. 

The other two CDs that I have from this year were Panic! at the Disco's "Death of a Bachelor" CD and Parachute's "Wide Awake" CD. Both of them were good, but I definitely haven't had them on replay like with A Pentatonix Christmas.

Favorite New Song of 2016:

Bad 4 Us by Superfruit

I said above that the songs from A Pentatonix Christmas were probably my favorites of the year, which is mostly because I didn't listen to a ton of new music this year. But in terms of newly released songs, this is definitely my favorite. I played this constantly for a solid month after its release. I nearly forgot about it because it's Superfruit (Scott and Mitch from Pentatonix) on YouTube rather than one of my favorite bands or a song from a new CD this year. I love this song so much. 

Favorite Pre-2016 TV Show:

The Genius

For the pre-2016 choices, I'm going with things that I discovered in 2016 that didn't come out in 2016.

This one squeaked in there riiiiight at the end of the year but oh boy did it make an impact. The Genius is a reality game show made in South Korea. I discovered it through listening to Rob Has a Podcast, and I checked out the first episode back in the summer. It was great, but I didn't watch past episode 1 until the last week of the year. Although I loved episode 1 the first time through, it resonated a lot more the second time I watched it and I ended up binge-watching the entirety of the season. I didn't finish the season until after the beginning of 2017, but I watched a good chunk of the season in 2016. This show is absolutely amazing and so smart. I can't wait to see the other three seasons, because I've gotten obsessed.

Favorite Pre-2016 CD:

The Walking In Between by Ben Rector

 Technically, I didn't discover The Walking in Between in 2016. I listened to it quite a while back, but I just listened to it on Spotify and then forgot it existed. And then I re-discovered it in 2016 and actually downloaded and played it on repeat. This may not have been my most listened to CD of the year, but it was really high up there. And the songs on this CD all kinda count as my favorite pre-2016 songs. 

The CD I listened to the most this year was probably Astoria by Marianas Trench, which came out in 2015. I first listened to it when it came out, but I severely underestimated it. I fell in love with it in 2016, to the point that I really wanted to put it here, but I did discover it in 2015 so I unfortunately couldn't. It did appear on my favorite CDs of 2015 list, which you can check out here.

Favorite Podcast I Discovered in 2016:

The Black Tapes

2016 was definitely the year of the podcast for me. I'd dabbled in podcasts before 2016, but only minimally (notably, listening to Rob Has a Podcast's Big Brother coverage). However, at the end of 2015 was when I first started listening to fictional podcasts and by the beginning of 2016, I went full force into the world of podcasts. The Black Tapes was the new discovery that I fell in love with the most. (However, I will say that I fell head over heels for Limetown with like 2 days left in 2015)

The Black Tapes is an incredibly creepy but engrossing podcast that is super unique and really interesting. It's not my absolute favorite podcast ever (that honor still goes to Rob Has a Podcast) but it's definitely the best one that I discovered in 2016. 

So... that's all I have for my favorites of 2016. It's a bit of a hot mess of a list, but that describes my 2016 pretty well. This list has made me realize that I didn't listen to much new music this year, and I think that this is largely because of the vast amount of podcast listening that I've been doing on my commute to school/work. 

If you're looking for my favorite books of 2016 (given that I make BookTube videos), I promise, it's coming! As with the last couple years, I'm going to be ranking every 2016 read on my blog, and I'm going to be doing end of the year videos on my YouTube channel as well. Patience, young Padawan.

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Thanks for reading! If you like my posts, I'd really appreciate if you'd subscribe/follow so that I know you're enjoying what I'm posting! See y'all soon! 

A Few of My Favorite Things [2015]

Hey, y'all! So it's been quite a while since I've been able to post, mostly because I've been insanely swamped this semester with tons and tons of work. I've already been on break for almost two weeks now, but I've spent pretty much the entire time just doing work for my research assistant position and finishing up my graduate school applications. But, FINALLY, I have finished most of the work that I have to do and can finally do some of the fun things that I've really missed over the past few months.

And, once again, it's the end of this year and the beginning of the new year and that means it's once again time for my "favorite things" lists. And this year, I'm going to be doing things a little differently. In the past, I've had a single post listing my all time favorite movies, tv shows, bands, etc. and a single post listing my favorite albums and songs of the year. This year, I'm going to be doing a 10 day posting marathon- one post per day, with one list apiece. These lists, unlike in the past, are not necessarily top 10 lists. They will vary in length depending on how much I'm able to narrow down that particular list.

The posting marathon will begin on January 1st, and the posting schedule with go as follows:

[Posts will be linked below once they go live]

January 1: Favorite Movies

January 2: Favorite TV Shows

January 3: Favorite Bands

January 4: Favorite Albums

January 5: Favorite Songs

January 6: Favorite YouTubers (non-booktube)

January 7: Favorite Booktubers

January 8: Favorite Albums of 2015

January 9: Favorite Songs of 2015

January 10: Ranking All of the Books I Read in 2015

Check out my links below!

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Thanks for reading! If you like my posts, I'd really appreciate if you'd subscribe/follow so that I know you're enjoying what I'm posting! See y'all soon!

Project Runway Season 14 Cast Overview & Predictions!

Hey, y'all! So, every time a new season of Project Runway rolls around, I declare once again that I'll be blogging (or attempting to blog) the new season, but after a few episodes, I give up. But not this season! Because I'm not even starting. Seriously, I'm not going to be doing weekly recaps!

However, what I AM going to be doing is running through the cast, talking about my first impressions. I'll also be giving these predictions:
-how well each person will do in the competition (out early [first 3/4 boots], middle of the pack, long-term [top 6ish])
-the 3 4 people that I think will make it to the finale (because let't be honest, it's not 3 anymore at this point)
-my dream top 4 (because this is probably different from who I think will make top 4)
-the person I want to win
-my way-too-early official winner pick (AKA the person I think stands the best chance of winning)

*Also, as a side note, this will probably be going up after episode 1 is aired, but I'm writing all of this before watching the episode and without looking up spoilers to see who was eliminated first* I say this because I've both been scarily correct (All Stars Season 1- pegged the first like 5 eliminations either on the nose or like 1 off), and incredibly incorrect (Season 12- pegged Miranda as the winner... yeah you probably don't even know who that is because she was eliminated like FOURTH).

Edit (right after first episode): As I said, sometimes I'm really right, and sometimes, I'm really wrong. I thought about editing my choices to make myself seem less dumb, but I just decided to leave it because it's honestly how I felt about things going into the season. So enjoy laughing at my FAIL, at least for this first episode...

Amanda Perna

So, I actually didn't recognize her until she started talking about being cast on season 9. I remember being slightly annoyed by her. Everything about her seemed too happysunshinerainbows. I do think that she shows some very obvious and considerable improvement. I thought that her clothes seemed really cool and interesting... for the most part. However, one thing that seems to have stayed consistent is that she seems to be a little too trendy. Last time she was on, her clothes seemed pretty trendy, and I kinda felt that again this time. Pretty much everyone showed one or two elements that other designers showed (high/low seemed to be the biggest commonality), but it seemed like Amanda had the most overlap. (I hope this makes sense...) That being said, I do like her clothes a lot more than last time and she seems to have grown a lot.

Prediction: Middle of the pack.

I could definitely see her being a late middle boot (as in top 7ish), but I'm not sure I could see her going much further, and I don't think I really see her winning it. 

Ashley Nell Tipton

I really like Ashley! She seems super nice and lots of fun. Aesthetic-wise, however, I have worries. I just kinda feel like it's been done before. I mean, obviously, a lot of stuff is reminiscent of other stuff, but I just feel like the clothes we've seen from her so far don't feel fresh, new, or unique. Not to say that I don't like the clothing she showed, I just feel like I've seen it before. And I do worry that because she designs for plus-sized women all the time, she might have trouble designing for the "model" size. Because I feel that designing for a different shape than you're used to designing for is difficult, but she seems extremely confident in her ability to switch over. We'll just have to see.

Prediction: Middle of the pack. 

I could see her as an early boot, but she strikes me as someone who's going to be middle or early-middle.

Blake Patterson

Half of me likes him, and half of me hates him. I think he's adorable when he keeps his mouth shut, but I think he can definitely become really obnoxious really quickly. I also don't see him lasting extremely well if he keeps up this bubble thing. If he keeps up the bubble stuff, I can see Nina haaaaating him. He also mentioned that his aesthetic is really over the top, and that usually doesn't go over well with the judges. The only person who's really lasted long like that is Joshua McKinley, and he still got constant comments telling him to tone it down. I think Alison Edmond pegged it in the interview. He seems to have two different things going on, and I think that his success on the show is completely dependent upon which of those he ends up going after. 

Prediction: Middle of the pack.

This is a very hesitant middle of the pack. I don't think he's going to make it incredibly far, and could definitely see him being out early. However, I think that if he heads in the right direction, he's good enough to make it through the first few eliminations. 

Candice Cuoco

I'm not sure which vibes I'm getting more from her: Elena (PR 10, All Stars 4) or Maya (PR 7). She also reminds me of Mila (PR 7, All Stars 1) and Helen (PR 12, All Stars 4). All of them are strong women with bold POVs who have done very well in this competition. It also means that I have about a 50/50 chance of liking her, depending upon which one of these women she ends up being most similar to. Right now, I like her and I think that she has a very strong aesthetic and will do really well.

Prediction: Long-term.

David Giampiccolo

I'm very torn here. I just... don't get it. There's one every season where I just don't understand their aesthetic. I think David seems like a super nice guy and I think I'll like him as a person on the show, but I just really don't understand what's appealing about oversized quilted coats. At all. Obviously, I don't mean this as rude or derogatory, because everyone likes different things, but this is the one that I just don't get. Also, almost everything we saw from him was outerwear, and I feel like most of the outerwear designers that we've seen on the show just don't do extremely well because they typically don't have time to get to the outerwear. 

Prediction: Out early.

I could also see him getting a bit further as well, and this makes me sad because I really like him as a person, but I'm not sure the judges are going to get his aesthetic either, and the outerwear thing doesn't have me extremely optimistic about his chances. 

Duncan Chambers-Watson

Duncan was the one person who stood out to me throughout the show personality-wise. Regardless of whether or not he ends up doing well in the competition, I know he's going to be one of my favorite personalities on the show (if not my definite favorite). I loved the jacket that he showed. Like, possibly my favorite item of clothing shown all episode. Overall, I just really liked his aestetic as well as him as a person. Two thumbs up.

Prediction: Long-term.

I wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't do as well as I think he will, mostly because I'm really biased. However, regardless of how I felt about his personality, I really like his aesthetic and think he has the talent to do well. 

Edmond Newton

Personality-wise, I really like Edmond. He seems like a really down-to-earth, chill guy. However, I liked very few of the clothing he showed. Maybe he has other, more cohesive stuff to show, but I just didn't think he had a very clear POV and I'm not exactly sure what his aesthetic is. On top of this, I also know that whenever someone tries over and over and over, it's typically for a reason and they don't do extremely well on the show (with the exception of my all time favorite PR contestant EVER, Seth Aaron Henderson, who tried out starting in season 3 and wasn't cast until season 7. Which he, of course, eventually won. Also, All-Stars 3.) Anyway, I digress. I'm not sure where to put Edmond. On the one hand, he doesn't seem to have a strong POV, but everyone also said that about Michael Costello, who has become one of the most commercially successful PR alums ever.

Prediction: Middle of the pack. 

I'm not sure I'd be surprised of his placement regardless of whether he goes early or makes it all the way to the end. He seems really tenacious, which could take him far. But, I'm also extremely unsure of his POV, which is usually seen as a weakness on PR. So I'm going to put him in the middle and just see what happens.

Gabrielle Arruda

Ugh. I think my negative opinion of her as a person is clouding my judgement of her designs. I just got a very "spoiled rich girl" vibe from her, but perhaps without the rudeness/cattiness (but I mean, who knows, maybe we WILL see that!). Anyway, apparently she graduated first in her class at Parson's, but I'm just not sure she has a clear POV. 

Prediction: Middle of the pack

I don't have too high of hopes for her, but I think she can last a few weeks.

Hanmiao Yang

I'm surprising myself by really liking Hanmiao. I think it's because usually the people who are these oddballs with really quirky personalities also have these really quirky/odd aesthetics that I just don't understand. But Hanmiao's strength (in my opinion) is that instead of channeling that quirkiness into crazy color schemes and odd shapes, she seems to channel it into really modern, interesting designs and patterns. And if there's one aesthetic that I appreciate above all others, it's androgyny. 

Prediction: Long-term. 

I might be biased, but I see a lot of potential in her, and can see her doing really well. 

Jake Wall

I don't feel extremely confident about his chances. Originally, I thought he might do well, but I think that might just be because he was so confident in his abilities. He seems like he's stuck in a bit of a polka-dot rut, also. He seems to rely heavily on his team, and a lot of the clothes he designs are things that take longer than a PR day to make. However, I also see him as someone who could float by in the middle for a while without getting much screen-time and then would suddenly re-appear because they ran out of obviously sub-par people to eliminate. 

Prediction: Out early.

I'm not 100% confident about this. However, I definitely don't think he's making it past the halfway point of the competition. Those dual-fabric jackets he showed were really cool, but I don't think he can make anything that outstanding within the confines of the competition.

Joseph Charles Poli

I think Joseph is going to get on my nerves. Maybe not as bad as some of the other people on the show, but unless he's just really funny or something, I'm probably not going to be a big fan of him. However, his clothes do seem to be really sophisticated and his construction seems on point. Even though he does seem to be a bit full of himself, it doesn't necessarily seem undeserved (if that makes sense). I'm not sure he's going to win, necessarily, but I can definitely see him sticking around for a long time.

Prediction: Long-term.

I'm not totally sure of position. I could see him making it to the finale, but I also wouldn't be surprised if he only made it to top 6.

Kelly Dempsey

Yikes. Mondo and Dmitry (the two PR alums who were in her casting interview) are two of my favorite contestants EVER on PR, but I just don't know what they were thinking. Kelly strikes me as being that contestant who will use fabric-like material in the unconventional challenge... if she even makes it there. Like, I just think she's going to be in way over her head here. I don't think the judges will get her aesthetic and I think that her clothes can turn tacky very easily. If I were to pick a "most likely to get kicked off first" contestant (which, I guess, is what I'm doing right now...) it would definitely, without a doubt, be Kelly. Also, on a personal level, I know she's going to annoy me. I can spot it from a mile away. She's going to get on my nerves.

Prediction: Out early. 

I just really can't see her lasting very long

Laurie Underwood

*Sigh.* I'm not a fan. Of anything. I feel like her designs, rather than being inspired by time periods in the past, look like they were dragged out of that time period or (even worse) look like costumes representing that time period. And she doesn't even seem to have nailed down a time period either. Like, some of her stuff looked really 40s, some looked like it could've stepped out of the 70s, and then there was like one lone dress that actually looked pretty current. And I'm not a huge fan of her personality either. She's one of those "too nice" people and people like that annoy me. Either way, aside from my personal dislike, I'm not sure the judges will like her designs if she keeps making stuff that looks so old.

Prediction: Out early. 

I'm sorry, I just can't see her doing well. 

Lindsey Creel

I'm going to just say it outright. I like Lindsey, and I think that she will do well. She has a very clear aesthetic that is very clean and minimal, and has shown to be very successful on the show. (Ex: Gretchen S8, Anya S9 and Sean 13, just to name a few, all had very well defined, clean aesthetics. And look where they are now.)

Prediction: Long-term.

Her POV is clear and she seems to really know what she's doing. 

Merline Labissiere

She didn't exactly make much of an impression on me. My impression of her clothes is that they look like they belong in a dystopian film because they're just so incredibly minimal, both in design and in color. I'm just not sure how well she's going to do. On one hand, I could see the judges thinking she's too minimal and sending her home early, but I could also see her designs not making huge waves and allowing her to slide through the first few eliminations without much trouble. 

Prediction: Middle of the pack. 

I see her as someone who's not going to get a lot of screen-time until a few episodes in, when the editing inevitably suggests that she's probably going home that episode. 

Swapnil Shinde

Y'all. Y'all. The second I saw his designs, I thought I heard angels singing. This was the first designer (halfway through the Road to the Runway episode) who really, truly, impressed me. I don't think that I saw a single design of his that I wasn't incredibly impressed with. However. His stuff is very intricate, and I'm worried about how well he will do within a short time-frame. I'm also getting shades of Christopher Palu (PR 10, All Stars 3) and Van (PR 10) in the sense that he does seem to use one specific design feature/pattern quite heavily (for Chris it was a V shape pattern, for Ven it was putting a rose into everything) and I worry that he could be someone that the judges are impressed with, but where they say "Hey, we've seen this a million times. Show us something different."

Prediction: Long-term.
I was really impressed, Y'all.


Prediction for the Finale!
(These are the ones I think will make the finale, not necessarily MY picks)

Swapnil


Lindsey


Candice


Joseph


I think these four stand a really great chance of making it to the finale because they have really strong aesthetics, and that has shown to be a huge advantage on PR. They all seem to have a very strong drive to win, and I think that this is the most probable finale.


My Finale Picks!
(AKA the designers that I subjectively think are the best)

Swapnil


Lindsey


Duncan

Hanmiao

Now obviously, I've only swapped out two people. And it's not that I don't think that Duncan and Hanmiao can make it to the finale. I absolutely think that they have strong aesthetics and will do really well. But, I also have a tendency of being somewhat blinded by my own like or dislike of people, so I worry that I see them as better than they actually are. Does that make sense? Anyway, I think that this is also a really viable option for the finale. In my opinion, this would be a really strong finale, and these are the four designers that I personally think are the best.

The Person I Want to Win!

Duncan

I just really think he's a cool dude and I really like his aesthetic. I'd be really happy if he were to pull out a win. 

My Official Winner Prediction!

Swapnil

I was just really, really impressed with his designs. Out of anyone, he seems to have the best chance of winning.

So, that's it for my Project Runway Season 14 cast overview and predictions! I can't wait to look back in a few weeks/months and see how horribly wrong I probably was on a lot of these... or, ya know, in like 5 minutes when I look up a spoiler to see who the first person to go home was. 

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A Few of My Favorite Things

Hey, y'all! So obviously, as a blogger, I blog because I enjoy it, but I also blog for the readers. What would be the point of me sharing my book hauls or challenges, if it was just for myself?

This post, however, is a little different. I'm a big list-maker, and I like making my top 10 favorites of different categories. And I realized I hadn't re-done my lists in a while, so I thought I should go ahead and do that now that we've reached the beginning of a new year. This, unlike most of my posts, is mostly for myself-- I want to keep up with how my favorites change from year-to-year, and posting it on here seemed to be the easiest way. I hope y'all enjoy this or find it interesting, but the main purpose for me is to keep track of how my favorites change over the years. 

Top 10 Bands/Musicians

#10: Busted

Busted has been broken up since 2005 (not including the recent creation of McBusted, the super-band consisting of Busted- minus Charlie Simpson- and McFly.). However, I still absolutely love their music. It's fun, clever, and cheeky, and I really enjoy it. 

#9: Sleeping With Sirens

I discovered Sleeping With Sirens in my freshman year of college, and I've been hooked ever since. Kellin Quinn's voice is just super unique, and it gives their music a really interesting sound. 

#8: Parachute

These guys used to be higher up on my list... like #3. Unfortunately, their 3rd album happened, and they wound up here. Their first CD is one of my all-time favorites (as you'll see later on this post), and their second CD was really great too. And then their third album went a bit too pop and I didn't like it much. I'm holding out hope that they'll have a better fourth CD, but until then, they get to chill at #8 and think about what they've done.

#7: Paramore

Paramore was the first alternative band that I listened to, and they've been a consistent favorite. For a little while, they were my all-time favorite. They fell a bit during the 4.5 year span between their 3rd and 4th albums, but since their self-titled CD came out last year, they've moved right back up. They're consistently great!

#6: The Academy Is...

For a really long time, The Academy Is... was my favorite band. I loved their podcast that they did (TAITV!), I loved all of the members, and I obviously loved their music. Their 3rd CD was slightly disappointing, but nowhere near as disappointing as when they announced their breakup in 2011. I'm still sad about that. 

#5: The Audition

I miss these guys. They're not broken up, but they haven't done anything in a while. There was something they posted this summer hinting at a new album, but I haven't heard anything else about that since then. The Audition is a fairly unknown band, but they're really great. Danny Stevens is a powerhouse vocalist and all of their CDs are really great. I really hope that new album happens, because I need more of The Audition in my life. 

#4: Marianas Trench

Marianas Trench is the most recent addition to this list. I've been listening to them casually for over a year, but I didn't really get into them until a few months ago. And I'm completely in love. Their last two albums have been concept albums, and they're super cool. Their music is really unique and actually really complex and layered. I can't wait to hear what they come up with next, because I'm sure it'll be amazing. 

#3: Pentatonix

These five are possibly the most talented musicians around right now. Each of them is so incredibly talented, from Avi's intense bass, to Kevin's beatboxing, to Mitch's 5 octave range. These five create the perfect combination of talent and vocal parts. They make amazing arrangements, and they just keep gaining momentum. They're perfection.

#2: All Time Low

These four... I love them. They were one of the first alternative bands that I discovered, and they've stuck around as a favorite ever since. They're just so consistently good. OK, Dirty Work wasn't amazing, but I won't hold that against them, because they released Don't Panic the next year. These four are just too great, and I'll be a fan 5EVER.

#1: McFly

These four are just perfect. I love my boys. Galaxy Defenders stay forever! They've made so much amazing music. I don't even know what all to say about them. I love them 5EVER and 5EVER. Perf.

Top 10 CDs

#10: The Black Parade by My Chemical Romance

I'm a big fan of concept albums, and this one is really great. Although there are a couple songs I'm not a huge fan of, the majority of them are really great, and overall it's just a really great and unique album.

#9: Hold on Tight by Hey Monday

Hey Monday's one and only full-length CD is most of the reason that I count it as one of my favorite bands-- they just barely missed out on my top 10. There are so many really great songs on this CD, and I just love Cassadee Pope's voice. I really wish the band had stayed together, because this is a really solid debut.

#8: Controversy Loves Company by The Audition

Another outstanding debut album! The Audition is another band with consistently good music, but this is the first and best of their CDs. Even my least favorite song on this CD is one of their better songs. This is just a really solid album, and I absolutely love it. 

#7: Almost Here by The Academy Is...

Oh, look! Another awesome debut! There are a couple songs I don't love on here, but I still really enjoy them and love the CD overall. Some of The Academy Is..'s strongest songs are on this CD, and it's especially impressive because this CD was released when most of the band were under 20. 

#6: American Idiot by Green Day

This one is kinda a given, right? It's a concept album, which is obviously a plus for me. It has some amazing songs on it, especially the full 10 minute long songs like Jesus of Suburbia. It has some of the strongest Green Day songs, and I could listen to it over and over and over and over. There's a reason why it's their most well-known album. 

#5: Ever After by Marianas Trench

Hey, look! Another concept album! This CD is based around a fantasy story that Josh Ramsay wrote. It's one long seamless song, divided into several tracks. And it's fantastic. Just like with their first concept album, Masterpiece Theatre, the last song is a mashup that samples all of the previous songs on the album, and it's amazing. This CD is just too great. 

#4: Losing Sleep by Parachute

Guess what? Another amazing debut! I love every single song on this CD. I used to fall asleep to this CD most nights (ironic, since it's called losing sleep) because it's just so chill. Parachute's whole vibe is just really awesome, and this CD is just the epitome of their vibe. It's so great.

#3: PTX, Vol. III by Pentatonix

This is the newest release on this list, as it was released only back in October. There are only 7 songs on this CD (technically EP, but whatever), but it's perfection. It's flawless. All of the songs are amazing, and there have been several times where I just listened to this EP over and over and over in one sitting and didn't get sick of it at all. Some of the songs on the EP are already among my top 25 most played. It's that good.

#2: Don't Panic by All Time Low

When this CD came out back in 2012, I don't think I stopped listening to it on repeat until halfway through 2013. This is one of the only albums I've ever listened to where I had to struggle to find a weak point. I'm usually really good at ranking songs from favorite to least favorite, but I found that impossible with this CD. It'll be a long-time fave for sure.

#1: Radio:ACTIVE by McFly

And, of course, my all-time favorite CD is by my all-time favorite band. This CD... it's just perfection. I've listened to it on repeat SO. MANY. TIMES. since its release in 2008, and I'm nowhere near tired of it. My list of favorite McFly songs is absolutely dominated by this CD. Up until I reset my iTunes, every single song on this CD was in my top 25 most played. That's 13/25. I love this CD. 

Top 10 Movies

#10: The Ring

I absolutely love The Ring, because not only does it shell out real scares and thrills, but it also has really amazing twists and turns and an incredible plot.


#9: The Truman Show

This is just such an awesome concept for a movie and Jim Carrey is just amazing in it. It's done so incredibly well and I just absolutely love it.


#8: Sweeney Todd

My favorite actor plays the lead role, it's set in London, it's a musical (with amazing music), it's got blood, guts, and horror, and almost half of the Harry Potter cast is in it. Need I say any more?


#7: Sydney White

Oh, Amanda Bynes, you were so amazing before you went crazy. It's so great and so hilarious, and I've loved it since the first time that I saw it.


#6: She's The Man

I love pre-crazy Amanda Bynes so much, and this is my favorite of her movies. This movie makes me laugh more than almost any movie, and it makes me cringe more than any movie, and it can even make me cry. It's so amazing.


#5: 10 Things I Hate About You

This is one of my newest favorites, but it's definitely going to be a long-standing favorite. This movie has so many amazing quotes, it's so funny, and I love the characters. Especially Kat and Patrick.


#4: Pitch Perfect

Pitch Perfect is so hilarious. The characters are so great (especially Beca. I love Beca.) and the music is absolutely spot-on. I'm way too excited for the sequel. Also, this and 10 Things I Hate About You are pretty much tied, so I just put them in random places.


#3: Clue

A lot of people that I know absolutely hate this movie, but I've seen it way too many times and absolutely love it. It's so hilariously campy and I love every second of it.


#2: The Princess Bride

Of all of the movies on this list, this is the one that's been among my favorites for the longest. I first saw this when I was 9, and even though I really liked it, I definitely wasn't fully aware of its perfection. But since then, I've realized how perfect it is, and fallen completely in love.

#1: Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure

What all can I even say about this perfect movie? It's so, so funny. The characters are so dumb, and I laugh the entire way through it. It's my absolute favorite movie. Perfection.



Top 10 TV Shows

#10: American Horror Story

I think that if I'd seen more of this show, I'd rank this a bit higher. I've seen all of Murder House (definitely my fave so far), half of Asylum, and all of Freak Show (so far). I need to finish the rest because it's on Netflix and it's a great show.


#9: Supernatural

This is another show that I would totally put higher, but I've only seen the first season and a half. I'm a terrible fan. It's just that so much stuff goes on in each episode that I feel like I can't multi-task because I'll miss something. And I really like to multi-task. But I will catch up, PROMISE!

#8: The Mole

This show deserves higher on this list, because it's genius and I've seen every single episode, but unfortunately, it's not on anymore and when it was on, it was super sporadic. It's a genius concept- a group of people are working together to win money for the group, which one of the players will ultimately win. BUT there's a twist. One of the players is working against the group to try to lose money, and no one knows who it is. And it's their job to figure it out. It's wonderful and awesome, but it's not still being made, which means I only have 5 seasons (of which only 2.5 are any good, and only 1 is AMAZING) to re-watch. 

#7: RuPaul's Drag Race

I've seen all of seasons 2-5, and half of season 6. And season 7 starts soon, YAY! I'm just a sucker for reality competitions (talent competitions, not the horror that is The Bachelor) and drama, and you best believe there's drama on this show. Some of my fave past contestants include Raja, Sharon Needles, Willam, and Alaska. 

#6: Community

Yet another show I'm behind on. But this one is for a slightly better reason-- it just hasn't been quite as good lately. In general, this show is genius. Seasons 2&3 are flawless. Season 4 was good, but I haven't gotten to season 5 yet. People are leaving the show and it's constantly on the verge of being gone forever. Not super deep, but it keeps me from catching up.

#5: The Taste

I love the format of this show. For those of you who don't know, it's literally The Voice for chefs. The judges build teams by tasting food blindly. And honestly, half the time I'm just rooting for my favorite mentor rather than contestants (OK, more like most of the time). My favorite mentors are definitely Ludo and Anthony. I tend to root for Ludo, but I'd definitely choose Anthony if I were on the show. 

#4: America's Next Top Model

Can you tell I really like reality competitions? I still watch this one even though it's getting worse and worse as the seasons go on. I really like that there are guys now, but the drama it brings is more annoying than entertaining. I kinda miss the girl drama. Anyway, I've seen almost every season of this show, some more than once, and I love it.

#3: Top Chef

I've done a pretty bad job of keeping up with this in college. The tv service that we have on campus doesn't get Bravo. The one in my apartment does, but I just haven't caught up. However, all of the seasons before I started college are really great, especially seasons 1-4. Season 2 is probably my favorite. Head-shaving incident FTW.

#2: The Office

This is the one and only show that I can say that I've seen every single episode of. Seasons 2-5 are definitely the best, but I really love the entire show. The characters are just so great, and the relationships that they form by the end are so beautiful. 

#1: Project Runway

THIS. SHOW. I love this show so much. Even though I haven't seen the second half of season 11 (Teams. Ugh.), I have seen every other season many, many times. I watch all of the spin-offs, I have DVDs of several seasons, and I even have the Project Runway book. Yep, superfan.  

Like I said, these lists are mostly for myself, but I do hope that if you got this far in the post, you at least enjoyed my lists or found them interesting!

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