A role model I have in my life is Hatsune Miku, and although she’s not even a real person, I can still find ways to look up to her!

“Who even is Hatsune Miku? Is she from an anime?”

Well.. no? Technically, Hatsune Miku isn’t really a ‘person’ either. She’s a vocal synthesizer developed by Crypton Future Media, and is more of a software rather than a character. Miku is something called a Vocaloid, which is also a software made to make a computer sing songs. The way this works is that the company records a human’s voice (in this case, Fujita Saki), and creates a library of Japanese phonemes from those recordings. By combining those sounds, the software manages to make the Vocaloid sing! She’s something like a celebrity, having over 100k songs made using her voice, with millions of views on many of them. She even sold out MULTIPLE 3D concerts worldwide!

“But.. how do you look up to a literal computer?”

Miku isn’t just a software though. She also has a bit of character herself! Miku is usually a 16 year old girl with long teal pigtails. She was given a more ‘futuristic’ appearance, taking inspiration from female androids in various anime and manga. Now, emphasis on the ‘usually’. Miku isn’t just one thing, she isn’t just one character. She’s more of an idea that you can mold into anything that you want. In some songs, she’s a princess attending a ball that has to kill the prince she’s slowly falling in love with. In other songs, Miku is a spoiled girl who is convinced that the world revolves around her, and I’m not even hitting the surface of how versatile Miku is!
This inspires me because it makes me think, “If Miku can be anything, maybe I can be anything as well!”, and you know what? You should be inspired by Hatsune Miku as well! If a literal computer software can create such a large community of MILLIONS of people, I bet you can make your own (..most likely smaller) community of people! You can go on to make an impact as well!

Many teens probably think they know what bullying is. You’ve been learning about it ever since elementary school! But are you sure you really know what bullying actually looks like? There are SO MANY different types of bullying that can occur, such as physical, verbal, online, and so many others. Another one of those ‘other types’ would be gaslighting.

“Gaslighting? What does that even mean?”

Gaslighting is a form of emotional manipulation, where a person makes someone doubt their own reality in an attempt to control them. Gaslighting and bullying aren’t much different, in fact, they go hand in hand! But, there are some distinct differences between the two. Bullying is when someone harms another in an attempt to create a power imbalance, gaslighting is an attempt to influence someone and even control them. Keep in mind that gaslighting can also be a form of bullying.

“How do I deal with bullying and gaslighting?”

If you are experiencing bullying and/or gaslighting, the most important step for you to take is asking for help. Whether it’s from a trusted adult or a close friend, it’s very important for you to contact someone who can help you with your situation. Remember that you aren’t alone, and that there are always people around who are willing to help you. If you think someone around you is being bullied, don’t be a bystander! You may feel powerless to help, but be assured that your actions are more important than you think. If you do nothing, that’s actually a way of encouraging the aggressor’s actions. If you are ever in a situation like this, immediately find a way to get help to the victim. No one deserves to be treated like this!

Everyone has probably experienced conflict in their relationships before. It’s a common part of life that happens everyday! Of course, that doesn’t mean it’s always a good thing. Conflict can happen when people don’t understand each other, when they have different interests, or separate opinions. Conflict within one’s self can also happen. Usually it’s when you start to question what you believe, especially if you learn something that’s much different. Conflict can lead to change, which is usually (but not always) positive!

“How should I deal with conflict?”

Dealing with conflict is easier said than done. But the first and most important step of dealing with it, is to understand that there is a conflict in the first place. The most important thing about resolving conflict is proper communication, and just understanding how the other feels. Remember to listen to them as well, and make sure they’re listening and understanding you as well. Remain calm and be open to considering other views/ideas. If you can’t decide on one proper solution to your problem, try negotiating with the other person! It’s a win-win situation that way.

“What are some negative ways of dealing with conflicts?”

Resorting to violence or name calling is definitely not a healthy way to deal with conflicts, nor is completely ignoring it in the first place. These ways lead to the problem NOT getting any better, and anger that will keep festering up from the issue. This can deteriorate your relationship if you don’t properly deal with conflicts, and can eventually lead to the two parties going their separate ways. Not only does it affect the relationship itself, but also the people involved, as their mental and physical health could be at stake. It’s better to just sit down and talk about it instead.

Hey! What are you doing dashing out the door like that, WITHOUT eating breakfast?! Sure, you’re running late on time, but don’t you know it’s the most important meal of the day? It’s been said for the longest time, “Breakfast is the most important meal of the day!”. Most probably brushed that off as some nonsense that their parents said to keep them in the house longer, but it’s actually pretty true!

“But will breakfast REALLY help me?? I mean, I can’t wake up early enough for that!”

Well, one thing about breakfast is pretty obvious. It gives you more energy in the morning, and that’s when you need it the most! There’s no worse feeling than having to slug around to your first class, not being able to focus because of how EXHAUSTED you are!! But you know a quick fix for that?.. Yeah, it’s actually eating a healthy breakfast in the morning.

Speaking of class, did you know that a healthy breakfast can actually improve your focus? That’s DEFINITELY useful for those dreadful morning classes.. Breakfast provides you with energy and nutrients that help your brain focus! Isn’t that just so convenient? Just remember to eat a HEALTHY breakfast, not some sugary junk that will make you crash later in the day. Eat whole foods with protein, whole grains and MANY fruits and vegetables!

Have you noticed how hungry you get around mid-morning when you don’t eat breakfast? Ever noticed having a horrific amount of cravings when lunchtime comes around? Yeah, that too is also because of your lack of breakfast. Eating breakfast can prevent these types of cravings from sticking around, and can prevent you from overeating a whole bunch of junk at lunch.

Did you also know that- Oh? What’s that? You’re actually going to eat a healthy breakfast today instead of dashing out the door? Well, who would’ve thought! At least you’re going to be in a MUCH better mood today now.

Remember to eat your breakfast today!.. Or tomorrow if it’s already past.

You know, it seems like everyone is just glued to their phones these days and.. well, they’re not to blame! Who wouldn’t want to endlessly scroll through short form content, constantly having your dopamine sensors being sent off, while continuing to ignore the various tasks that you have at hand? (Not at all projecting!.. Um.)

That sounds a bit.. uncomfortable when describing it like that, but it’s too far off. In fact, social media has been DESIGNED to do exactly that! Keeping you glued to scrolling on your phone, isn’t that just great!.. Yeah, no. Now, all this jibber jabber may sound like something an old angry boomer would write on Facebook, but even Facebook has them addicted. Social media platforms, such as Instagram, Tiktok, Twitter (not going to call it X.. ew..), Snapchat and Facebook, are designed to keep you on it for as long as possible, shoving as many advertisements in your face as possible. Give them money!! They want your money!! With their algorithms constantly watching your every move and collecting as much information about you as they can, there’s something for everyone isn’t there? Just.. keep.. on.. scrolling..

Other than the platforms themselves, the information being spread on social media.. Well, it’s MUCH easier to spread misinformation nowadays, especially with the rise of photo editng, and just plain bad media literacy! Do you actually reflect on that one post you see about how this person did.. whatever? Do you actually think any story is 100% truth, and take it at face value? It’s easy to just lie through a screen and take zero responsibility, isn’t that how conspiracy theories spread? People will just read words off of a screen and take it at face value, believing each and every lie told to them. Don’t believe it? Just take a look at “Pizzagate”, or whatever happened with the Wayfair conspiracy theory. Yeah..

Now, this blog post isn’t meant to scare you off of social media forever, but it’s important to be aware of the dangers that can affect users!