Na Na Na Na. Hey, Hey, Hey. Goodbye.

So weird to think this blog just got started and, unfortunately, my time at The Jambar is coming to a close.

I don’t want to waste this space with sappy goodbyes; you can all read that in my goodbye letter. Rather, I’d like to use this time to give glimpses into my journey through college and how music has helped me.

I started here at YSU as a music major and was determine to be a flute performer. I came down from that dream — practicing so much quickly made performing not as fun as it was in high school.

I still perform, but on my own time, and it’s become a much more creative outlet for me.

Still, making the decision to drop my music major was scary for me. It was all I wanted in high school, and I didn’t know where else to go.

All I knew was that Panic! at the Disco was playing on my iPod constantly.

My freshmen year of college, my entire life as I knew it changed because my nephew Lyric was born.

Little did I know how much that kid would help me. I remember he would only let anyone change his diapers if we played the music video for “Nine In The Afternoon,” by P!ATD.

I was also listening to a P!ATD song after I told one of the music professors that I didn’t want to be a music major anymore.

As many of you know, it was then, at a P!ATD concert, I decided to go into journalism.

I owe this band a lot.

The next major milestone I can think of in my college career was when I decided to apply to The Jambar and when, for some reason, they hired me.

That summer before I started working for the paper, The Bigger Lights were my band of choice.

I remember confiding in lead singer Topher Talley about how nervous I was to start this job and to basically leave behind the only thing I ever knew.

He looked me in the eyes and said, “Wow, you’ve got guts,” because I was taking on two  jobs and school.

Whenever I was having a moment of “I can’t do this,” I would remember that conversation and find a way to pick myself up.

As a way to hold onto my preteen boy band obsession, I started listening to Big Time Rush.

As stupid as it may sound, they helped me a lot, too.

I had a lot of moments of “I can’t do this,” and one night when I was seriously considering dropping out of school, I was listening to “Invisible,” by BTR.

I wrote the lyrics out and glued them to my ceiling so I wake up to it everyday. “You’re a star, the sky’s the limit.”

Very recently, as my time at The Jambar is coming to a close, I realize it’s time to grow up.

I know I’ll never fully grow up, and I’ll always be a little kid on the inside, but when “Coffee Break,” by Forever the Sickest Kids starts playing on your way to your last production night, I suppose I can’t be blamed for being kind of sad.

I immediately started playing “Somewhere in Neverland,” by All Time Low just so I could feel like it’ll all be alright.

I don’t know what the future holds for me and my peers. I just know that we’ll all be okay.

I would like to thank all of my readers. Having this blog meant a lot to me, so thank you for your criticism and praise.

If I could bestow a bit of advice to you all, it would be ‘never ever stop listening to music. Never be ashamed of what makes you happy, and always dance as if no ones watching’.

Chin Up. Press On. We will survive.