colon, ending parenthesis

6 Bros and a Bill

2011-12-18T23:16:00.009-05:00

I joined my neighbors for some brews the other day to celebrate (and lament) the end of our undergraduate careers. It took way too much teamwork and way too long for six - now degree-holding - gents to split the bill. I kept to my happy corner and witnessed the following.

but they were gents, indeed.
HAPPY DECEMBER!

Rubbish Heaps

2011-12-07T01:59:00.004-05:00

I did the 'ol Facebook sweep and deleted 250+ acquaintances from the 'friends list' - nothing personal at all, just got tired of seeing porn, aborted babies, and people I can't ask out for lunch because they transferred to Penn State in my feed. The only person to say anything about it was a fellow insomniac who, after expressing his deepest, truest feelings of rejection and neglect, asked what I've been listening to as of late.

This then is for you, chap. And the rest of you, too. Enjoy!

Music makes the people come together ...

2011-11-03T02:15:00.003-04:00

.. ya? So I made a page on soundcloud! Check it out!! There's 4 tracks so far ... and I'm mid-project on another one. Hooray!

1. "The Captain" (Kasey Chambers cover) - some dude told me to cover this song, so I did!
2. "Three Little Birds" - a classic that I tried when I was bored two summers ago in Charleston
3. "Doubting Thomas" (Nickel Creek cover) - this song helped me through a super tough decision last year. Too good.
4. "The Newest One" - because I feel like titling songs is pretentious? I don't know. A kid did a sweet thing one night to come over and listen to me vent life's problems. So ... I wrote him a song. Sadly, I think that's a closed case. (dawww).

Check these out and let me know how you feel! I stttrrrronnngglyyyyyyyyy recommend stickin' some headphones in ... I don't record with anything fancy, so it'll sound slightly better if the sound's goin' right to your head. :)

New Orleans

2011-10-31T03:54:00.007-04:00

Happy Birthday!

2011-08-21T18:05:00.007-04:00

Dearest Birthday Bird from the Blue Nile on Frenchmen Street in New Orleans,

It's been months (literally) since the show, but I'm finally getting these up! You must forgive me, though I truly have no excuse. Perhaps you forgot ... but here are your birthday shots anyways! Happy day! !!!! ! !!! ! !!!!!! ! !!!!!!!!!!!! !!!! !!

Lover, Come Back

2011-08-15T07:48:00.005-04:00

This is easily my new favorite movie - tied with Pirate Radio.
Look at her!! She just found out she's been bamboozled.
I swear Doris is the original Meg Ryan.
HA!

(just screenshots from the movie on YouTube)

Pillow Talk

2011-08-14T01:20:00.013-04:00

I'm on a Doris kick, so I stayed up tonight - putting off packing up my apartment - to watch Pillow Talk. I can't even tell you how much she reminds me of my mum's mum! If you haven't seen the movie, you have to. Oh!!

Rock Hudson and Doris Day's roles in the movie remind me WAY too much of how my grandparents met. My granddad was the 'Brad Allen'; all the ladies loved him even though they knew what a playboy he was. He grew up in Texas, and the birds in Iowa fell super hard for his cowboy manner. One night, my grandma and her friends were out on a hayride with my granddad and his buddies .. paired up, sitting boy-girl-boy-girl, and every fifteen minutes (you're not gonna believe this) my granddad would blow a whistle so the pairs would switch up. The girls had no idea!! They were livid, but in the middle of nowhere so they had to entertain it. When Merleen got to Warren, she let him have her mind. She snapped, he fell in love. 55-plus years later, they're married and too infatuated ... playing bingo twice a week and holding hands everywhere they go.

I went to visit them in Nevada for spring break and they took me to their local bingo hall. My granddad is still a total cowboy, and years have done nothing to wear off his sly charm. There's a certain Peggy who has a thing for him, so my grandma never lets him go alone! When we went, she walked in, scouting the room. She didn't see her, so she asked, "Warren, is your Peggy here?" he said - with a ridiculous smile on his face - "No, but Carol is!" HA! She hit him on the arm, then repeated the hayride and whistle story, linking arms and laughing. I know she relives that moment all the time. Man, these two are great. I'll scan some pictures of them in a little bit, but for now, I'll just share Rock and Doris. Know that the four are identical, and that soulmates exist. :)

(1)
(2 .. don't remember!)
(3)

Doris Day

2011-08-10T22:08:00.005-04:00

I just watched Calamity Jane again yesterday.
Doris is a dish, and looks exactly like my grandmother. :)

(merci)

New Orleans

2011-08-03T12:07:00.003-04:00

YES!! I've been dying to go ever since I started listening to Dinah Washington and really getting into jazz. NOW IT'S HAPPENING!! This was quite the spur-of-the-moment ordeal, but one of my dear friends is stationed in Biloxi, Mississippi - just a little under an hour outside of the city. She wanted me to visit her either while she was stationed there or in Ohio ... so it reeeeally wasn't a tough choice :) I am SO anxious to see the place for myself; New Orleans is so rich in a history that I'm actually interested in. And Louis Armstrong Park?! I'm gonna cry when I take my picture next to that statue. OoOoooOOOOOoooooOOOOooooOOoOoOoOOh!! To hear music outside, see the water, be immersed in a different lifestyle, and just to be back in the SOUTH. Cannot wait. 15 days :)

Hey, look ...

2011-08-01T08:08:00.006-04:00

... I'm blogging again! Erm - this counts ... :)

Miss you, birds. Trewlee.

happy thursday!

2011-07-28T04:52:00.002-04:00

:) comments on them would thrill me.

2011-06-02T15:16:00.004-04:00

There are those who love to get dirty
and fix things.
They drink coffee at dawn,
beer after work,

And those who stay clean,
just appreciate things,
At breakfast they have milk
and juice at night.

There are those who do both,
they drink tea.

- Gary Snyder

Temporarily back ..

2011-05-03T02:18:00.006-04:00

.. with a temporary girl crush. Came across these pictures of Bettie Page (I definitely don't recommend plugging her name into Google Images) and fell hard. So. Much. Fun.

Anyways, school's out, summer's up, I promise I'll be back .. and with
my OWN work! Lots has been going on, there's oh so much to share :)

The best summer, pt. I

2011-02-04T15:16:00.006-05:00

... spent in Charleston, South Carolina. I'll finish this post a bit later, just thought I would leave you with pretty boats and the harbor for now. :)

Lozzy ..

2011-01-26T23:31:00.007-05:00

this has been my week:

this shall be my weekend:

weekend, please hurry.

(les deux)

My Django

2011-01-26T02:24:00.007-05:00

The dream pup.
Can't wait til I have a little flat in Paris with this kid ..
.. it'll be lovely. :)

(1)
(2)

Nothing needs to be said.

2011-01-22T19:32:00.010-05:00

. . . .

(merci)

Oh, heh ..

2011-01-15T20:01:00.014-05:00

It's been SO LONG!!! I've been on hiatus for a bit, with winter break, Mexico, Christmas, birthday (21, woop woop!), New Years and all ... but I am back - and with fantastic news to kick off the year!! Roommate AM and my dearest McKenzie are engaged!! Congratulations to the two birds and the lucky gentlemen that get to call them 'honey' from here on out!

Sadly, I wasn't able to check off every item on the 2010 to-do List, but I do have a number of new goals and the like to accomplish by the end of this year .. for example, getting a camera. These are some parasailing pictures and such from my recent Mexico trip. Enjoy them, and pretend they were taken with a super fancy DSLR ... with a wide angle lens ... and fisheye effects ... a panoramic setting ... you know. :) Happy 2011!

If you feel so inclined ...

2010-12-16T15:49:00.012-05:00

... you may stick this book under my tree. :)
Is this not fantastic? So I know I'm looking at a lot of them here, but Herman Leonard's, Jazz, is a collection of pictures that the photographer took throughout his life. A few of his posters are hanging in my room back home.

From an NPR writeup:

I've often told anyone who would listen that if I could jump into a time machine I'd go back to New York just after World War II to soak up the birth of bebop from the front row of so many small, cramped, smoky nightclubs.

Page 33 of a new book of Herman Leonard photos takes me as close as I'll ever get ... a dapper, young Thelonious Monk in 1949 leaning over a piano, working something out on a sheet of music paper, framed by the open top of the piano, bathed in a strategically placed light and of course textured by the smoke of a burning cigarette.

The image gives me the chills: It was taken inside Monton's Playhouse, an intimate uptown after-hours room where Monk, Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and others worked out the foundations of bebop — the sound that revolutionized jazz.

Thelonious, Miles, Oscar with Buddy (here)
Frank (hapa)
Billie (ici)
The Duke (aquí)

.. + the lady who I can't quite name ...

Mi cuarto

2010-12-16T14:58:00.008-05:00

dead plants, semi-snow, Christmas twigs, A.M.
this is the way I live.

Uzbekistan

2010-12-14T15:57:00.005-05:00

I think I'd like to see this. They call it, "The Doors to Hell". Uzbekistan? Turkmenistan? Regardless, it's on my Things to See list. (Clicking the images takes you to their source).

Four more days ...

2010-12-13T23:36:00.009-05:00

... and I'll be through with finals, out of the snow, and off to Mexico! Here's a bit of what I'm looking forward to - I took these from my trip two years ago ... and I'm beyond excited to get back. Enjoy :)

My roommate ...

2010-12-11T10:55:00.016-05:00

... went out last night. She came back at 2:45 in the morning, woke me up, and asked me to make her grilled cheeses. Bette Davis, here, is going to show us how this went down.

(a lot of noise) "A.M.? Is that you?"

"No .. you didn't wake me up or anything ..."

"Yes, yes .. I can see you've been drinking ..."

"You expect me to get up right now and make you dinner..."

"Fine."

Some roommates deserve awards. No, not her. Me. Ugh.

If I could meet anyone ...

2010-12-05T19:44:00.018-05:00

The first three pictures are from Google, Images ..
the second three are screenshots from a documentary.
Don't report me? I'm innocent. Truly.

My favorite name ...

2010-12-03T21:17:00.005-05:00

Ruth. I absolutely love it. Don't tell me it's old fashioned - she's one of my favorite characters in the Bible and she's a phenomenal songstress. Ruth Brown (in the pictures), Dinah Washington (born a Ruth, changed her name) .. can't get enough. Here's one of the birds I'm doing a presentation on this Tuesday. I suppose I'll know more about her once I'm through with my research, I just figured I'd share these saucy pictures. She knows how to get down with her bad self. No shame, just passion. Love the Ruths.

(merci bien)

2010-11-29T20:16:00.006-05:00

bring me flowers
and talk for hours
and ooh I like you

Blues and grass,

2010-11-20T12:45:00.011-05:00

I found out about this spectacular weekend festival called FloydFest via the Carolina Chocolate Drops' fan page. Clicked the link, checked it out, destined to go. I've always wanted to do one of these camp concert things, like Bonnaroo, but it's never worked out for me to go. Well now, with school completed by then and a summer of freedom (plus this is relatively close to home), I'm thinking I might grab some friends and rough it for a bit with some fantastic bluegrass and Americana music. Since coming back from a RV mission trip a few weekends ago, I've been digging for an excuse to rent an RV again. A home, kitchen, car, shower, and bathroom all in one? They just make so much sense! McKenzie's swaying me in the pitched tent direction, but these pictures make me want to build a tepee. How fantastic would that be? It'd make for some pretty nifty pictures ...

(instructions)

Eventually,

2010-11-19T13:11:00.005-05:00

... I'll go back to blogging about pictures I actually take
myself, but until then, let's just talk about Natalie Wood.

(source)

My kinda cat lady

2010-11-17T02:18:00.010-05:00

(merci bien)

Imogene Coca is adorable, and so is her cat. I love these candid expressions, her comfy skirt, and the squared-off sofa. Makes me miss lying around with my Sweet Girl.

I love the rain the most

2010-11-15T12:31:00.012-05:00

with hot tea, lots of blankets, and good company.

In five days ...

2010-11-07T17:41:00.020-05:00

there will be arts
there will be crafts
there will be cooking
there will be eating
there will be singing
there will be dancing
there will be hugging
there will be .. ooh là!
there will be these birds
(and myself)
and lots of pictures,
and lots of laughter;
these four
for three days
two nights
one weekend
and it will be pure joy.

Anchor

2010-10-24T16:35:00.015-04:00

when all the world is spinning round, like a red balloon
way up in the clouds
and my feet will not stay on the ground, you anchor me back down.
I am nearly world renowned as a restless soul
who always skips town,
but I look for you to come around and anchor me back down.
there are those who think I am strange, they would box me up
and tell me to change
but you hold me close and softly say that you wouldn't
have me any other way.
when people pin me as a clown, you behave as though
I'm wearing a crown
when I'm lost I feel so very found, when you anchor me back down.
when all the world is spinning round, like a red balloon
way up in the clouds
and my feet will not stay on the ground, you anchor me back down.

hum along.

I like games. I like board games with my roommate, name games as icebreakers, love games with Anna, geography games on Sporcle, and word games at night. One of my favorite games, though, is called 'Honesty'. Simply put, it's where you share something honest.

Honesty:
The lyrics to that song? I miss the kid who made me feel that way.
tumtumtum.

My birthday's coming up ...

2010-10-23T14:52:00.002-04:00

(premier et dernier)
(deuxième)

2010-10-22T10:57:00.002-04:00

(read this)
(oh, and read this, too)

just love ^ this blog.

The rough part: Budapest

2010-10-19T02:05:00.018-04:00

Another revelation ...

2010-10-18T16:10:00.004-04:00

. . . .

Monday afternoon
it's 4:11 pm
I'm sitting in bed
with a glass of red wine
and
pumpkin bread.

I suppose I may not graduate in 4 years.

. . . .

My future roommate ..

2010-10-17T15:22:00.014-04:00

Clicking the pictures will take you to the authors.
This photograph is my favorite, but I can't post it for copyright reasons (I think).
His name will be Django,
and that is all.

The good part: Vienna

2010-10-16T13:38:00.012-04:00

Travel is relatively cheap within Europe, so I spent a 4-day weekend in Vienna and Budapest with un ami à moi, Matt. Naturally, my parents were hoping I would do something educational - visit monuments, learn, and share experiences unique to the cities we were in ... so, we spent an evening with locals at Flex, grooving to one of the biggest sound systems in Europe. We learned a lot. :) Enjoy!

Best Coast

2010-10-12T12:52:00.004-04:00

I even tried not to think.
I was alone, face to face with the sea ..
far from cruises and beaches;
fulfilling a childhood dream
put off year after year.

I wanted my gaze of the sea to be as empty as possible,
void of any painterly or botanical curiosity.
For if I'd allowed earlier inclinations,
I might have been an art collector or botanist.

I lost myself completely
in the play of shadow and light
sinking into a lethargy, heightened by the water
- the state of passivity, of complete availability
promised to last much longer than the euphoria
of one's first summer dip in the ocean.

I could easily see myself spending a whole month this way.

Nice, Revisited

2010-10-10T15:50:00.008-04:00

Nice, France

2010-10-10T14:46:00.006-04:00

This is the last time ...

2010-10-06T15:15:00.006-04:00

... I'll post about random things. But she's so lovely!
Claudia Cardinale. Just thought everybody should know.

(rights)

Gloria

2010-10-05T11:05:00.004-04:00

I made breakfast to this song today.

Hooray!

2010-10-03T20:49:00.007-04:00

I have a new (old) camera! Glenna the Benevolent has gifted me her Olympus OM-4T. Do I know what those letters and numbers mean? Nope. Do I know how the buttons work? Nope. Am I excited about the cost of developing film adding up over time? Nope. But am I super pumped and inspired by these sample shots? Absolutely.

None of these are mine, I just thought they were pretty. Clicking on them will take you to their author.

2010-09-30T15:41:00.007-04:00

I had a thought.
I woke up this morning and said,
'Tut tut, it looks like rain.
I suppose I should wear my boots today.'
So, I put them on.
I'm walking to class, stepping in lots of puddles,
and as I do, I think about God.
This is what I have contrived:
strong faith is like a pair of rainboots;
they make it possible to walk through puddles without getting wet.
* * * *
You see?
If you think about your day the way A. A. Milne would write it,
you have a wonderful story.
And, if you think about your day the way God would write it,
you have an even better one.

That is all.

Paris, finally

2010-09-16T00:36:00.016-04:00

My heart has been stolen and is hiding somewhere beneath the flying buttresses of Notre Dame. I guess I have to go back and retrieve it.
* * *

I took these in the spring of 2009 while studying French in the most beautiful city in the world. I was set up in an ancient apartment in the middle of the 6th Arrondissement (Saint-Germain-des-Près) with two lovely roommates and two gentlemen down the boulevard. It was absolutely perfect ... there really is no other way to put it!

You know those postcards of vintage photographs .. all faded in black and white? Yes. That was the idea for these pictures. Enjoy :)

* Note: if you would like an idea as to how Paris feels inside, listen to Henri Salvador.

J'habite à Saint-Germain-des-Prés, et chaque soir j'ai rendez-vous avec Verlaine
Ce vieux Pierrot n'a pas changé, et pour courir le guilledou près de la Seine
Souvent on est flanqué d'Apollinaire
Qui s'en vient musarder chez nos misères
C'est bête .. on voulait s'amuser ..
Mais c'est raté .. on était trop fauchés.

Regardez-les, tous ces voyous,
Tous ces poètes de deux sous, et les teints blême
Regardez-les tous ces fauchés qui font semblant de ne jamais finir la semaine
Ils sont riches à crever .. d'ailleurs ils crèvent
Tous ces rimeurs fauchés font bien des rêves
Quand même, ils parlent le latin .. et n'ont plus faim
A Saint-Germain-des-Prés.

Vous qui passez rue de l'Abbaye, rue Saint-Benoît, rue Visconti; près de la Seine
Regardez le monsieur qui sourit .. c'est Jean Racine ou Valéry .. peut-être Verlaine
Alors vous comprendrez
Gens de passage .. pourquoi ces grands fauchés font du tapage
C'est bête - il fallait y penser, saluons-les
A Saint-Germain-des-Prés.

Unconditional Love

2010-09-10T13:37:00.004-04:00

an excerpt (or chapter..) from the book I'm reading.

3 The Meaning of Love

". . . It is only with the heart that once can see rightly;
what is essential is invisible to the eye."
ANTOINE DE SAINT EXUPERY.
The Little Prince

... If it were a feeling, love would be a very fickle reality and those who construed it to be a feeling would be very fickle people. Rather love is a decision and a commitment. My Christian vocation is to love all people. This means that I must try to do for each person with whom I interact whatever I can to promote that person's true growth and happiness. However, I cannot enter into an actual and ongoing love relationship with everyone. I must therefore decide - and it should be a careful choice - to whom and at what level of commitment I wish to offer my love.

Having made such a decision, on the presumption that my offer of love has been accepted and reciprocated, I am now by my own free choice committed to the happiness, security, and well-being of the person I love. I will do everything I can to help that person build whatever dreams he or she has. It is this commitment which I make when I offer my love. When I question myself about the place love has in my life, I must therefore ask if there is any person in my life whose growth and happiness is as real or more real to me than my own. If so, love has truly entered my life.

* * *

Obviously the commitment to love will involve me in much careful and active listening. I truly want to be whatever you need me to be, to do whatever you need done, and I want to say whatever will promote your happiness, security, and well-being. To discover your needs, I must be attentive , caring, and open both to what you say and to what you cannot say. However, the final decision about the "loving thing" must be mine.

This means that my love may be "tough" love, not all sweet and coddling . . . but, when needed, my love will also be "tender". If you have tried and failed, and you just need a hand in yours in the dark of disappointment, you can count on mine.

I may read you wrongly on occasion and misjudge your needs. I have done this so often to so many in the past. But know this, that my decision is to love you and my commitment is to your true and lasting happiness. I am dedicated to your growth and fulfillment as a person. If I should fail you, for lack of wisdom or because of the abundance of weakness in me, please forgive me, try to recognize my intention, and know that I will try to do better.

TRUE LOVE IS UNCONDITIONAL

There is no third possibility: love is either conditional or unconditional. Either I attach conditions to my love for you or I do not. To the extent that I do attach such conditions, I do not really love you. I am only offering an exchange, not a gift. And true love is and must always be a free gift.

The gift of my love means this: I want to share with you whatever I have that is good. You did not win a contest or prove yourself worthy of this gift. It is not a question of deserving my love. I have no delusions that either of us is the best person in the world. I do not even suppose that, of all the available persons, we are the most compatible. I am sure that somewhere there is someone who would be "better" for you or for me. All that is really not to the point. The point is that I have chosen to give you the gift of love and you have chosen to love me. This is the only soil in which love can possibly grow. "We're gonna make it together!"

THE MESSAGE OF UNCONDITIONAL LOVE

The essential message of unconditional love is one of liberation: You can be whoever you are, express all of your thoughts and feelings with absolute confidence. You do not have to be fearful that love will be taken away. You will not be punished for your openness or honesty. There is no admission price to my love, no rental fees or installment payments to be made. There may be days when disagreements and disturbing emotions may come between us. There may be times when psychological or physical miles may lie between us. But I have given you the word of my commitment. I have set my life on a course. I will not go back on my word to you. So feel free to be yourself, to tell me of your negative and positive reactions, of your warm and cold feelings. I cannot always predict my reactions or guarantee my strength, but one thing I do know and I do want you to know: I will not reject you! I am committed to your growth and happiness. I will always love you.

Powell, John S.J.. Unconditional Love. Niles: Argus Communications, 1978. Print.

Robin Hood

2010-08-17T16:25:00.011-04:00

After work, Kevin and I watched Robin Hood. Disney movies are so good!! I really don't have much to say ... just know that we laughed so hard that I replayed the movie, took screen shots of the best parts, and am sharing them here with you (I know, I need a hobby. Sadly, this is it). Applaud my effort and leave a comment :)

***

Theft

2010-08-12T06:35:00.005-04:00

It's 6:35 in the morning ... Kevin just left for school and Paka is drinking the water that I begged him to bring upstairs for me. Bart is thumping in his cage, and if you have any prior knowledge as to the size of Bart's paws, his wrath, and the resonating sound of metal, I don't think you would judge me for being awake at this hour. Good morning, Thursday.

* * *

I found this poem that I have to share from one of my potential future wedding photographers' blog. That's all I'm posting today :)

superbly situated
by robert hershon

you politely ask me not to die and i promise not to
right from the beginning—a relationship based on
good sense and thoughtfulness in little things

i would like to be loved for such simple attainments
as breathing regularly and not falling down too often
or because my eyes are brown or my father left-handed

and to be on the safe side i wouldn’t mind if somehow
i became entangled in your perception of admirable objects
so you might say to yourself: i have recently noticed

how superbly situated the empire state building is
how it looms up suddenly behind cemeteries and rivers
so far away you could touch it—therefore i love you

part of me fears that some moron is already plotting
to tear down the empire state building and replace it
with a block of staten island mother/daughter houses

just as part of me fears that if you love me for my cleanliness
i will grow filthy if you admire my elegant clothes
i’ll start wearing shirts with sailboats on them

but i have decided to become a public beach an opera house
a regularly scheduled flight—something that can’t help being
in the right place at the right time—come take your seat

we’ll raise the curtain fill the house start the engines
fly off into the sunrise, the spire of the empire state
the last sight on the horizon as the earth begins to curve

Now I can smile when I say, "Good morning, Thursday" :)

My Favorite Haunt

2010-07-14T16:29:00.004-04:00

Driftwood Beach in Jekyll Island, Georgia

Kevin and I stopped here on the way back from spending spring break on Amelia Island. Before break started, he told me to pick a place in the southeast where we could spend a week - just the two of us - so I used maps and some friendly input to look at every place that ended in "island". :) In the search, I found these pictures and was totally moved to get there! It was pouring down rain .. no thunder or lightning .. just perfect weather conditions for such an eerie place.

The beach is totally secluded - there isn't even an established entrance or sign denoting it - so after asking a few locals, we parked a fair distance away from this dirt path, and walked through a swampy jungle-like forest towards the water. As soon as the brush cleared, we were facing this huge clearing with MASSIVE uprooted oak trees, eroded in he sand. Just. Awesome.

Kevin wasn't thrilled when he heard we were taking a major detour to go see "driftwood" ... but take a look at these pictures. Definitely worth another trip. :)

Hello There, Miss Athena

2010-07-14T14:45:00.014-04:00

Hey mates, it's been a while! Since I don't really enjoy typing about my life (but I feel as if I do owe some sort of explanation...) I'll sum you up with a bit about the past few months. I finished junior year - barely - and then relocated to Charleston, South Carolina for the summer! I went into the summer endeavor thinking I'd have all the time in the world to sit and share pictures, but no. I have a full-time job, and instead of paying rent at the house, I clean (mind you I live with 4 boys...) so you can trust that I stay super busy.

Enough!

Here are some untouched pictures from Delphi, Greece, when I went to visit the Tholos of Athena Pronaia in 2008. How beautiful is this place? Again, I'm using my dad's Pentax (which he made me give back to him - sad day). I didn't do anything fancy to these ... I just wanted to get something up to entertain you all in the meantime. As always, please enjoy :)

Lomo Sample

2010-02-23T23:50:00.005-05:00

1. Roadtrip from Vienna to Budapest (not recommended)
2. Budapest & the Danube (highly recommended)
3. Chasing pigeons in the Castle District
4. Home :)
5. Steel City

It's been a truly horrid day.

And it's late, but I really wanted to put these up.
I'll add the rest later on and tell fun stories when the sun's out (bleh).
If you find these nifty, think about getting a lomography camera.
Here's the one I putz around with.
Ohhhhhh it's been a long time since I've done the Money Dance.
So in the mean time, I'll just dream.
I'll dream big.

tumtumtum.

a blog without pictures

2010-02-16T15:38:00.006-05:00

I've just realized that the basic purpose of blogging is to blog ... to use words to ramble about your day, rant about your problems, or share the things you like. Personally, I'm not a huge fan of that - not for narcissistic reasons, as my friends word it - but simply because nothing significant occurs throughout my days that merits the expense it is for someone with my attention span to sit and use complete sentences to type a story. I hate writing. I like pictures. So, I share pictures. I guess my blog is more for showing than a telling ... however I would love for you to tell me how the things I show make you feel (oh, to play with words hahah). :)

No. Today was important. Today was a sequence of petite revelations that lead me to ponder the existence and question the purpose of things. * Like mascara. I never cried over things until I bought a non-waterproof mascara. And now, everything makes me weep. Of course that would happen. And It's 2010 ... why would anyone even bother to not make waterproof mascara? Does CoverGirl not realize that it's snowing outside? And raining? And that pilates makes you sweat? And why am I even buying mascara? My lashes are long enough to be called drapes or curtains ... when did I become this much of a girl? And why am I even caring about how I look? Who is there to impress? Where's Kevin? (... begin crying, watch it streak, ugh.) See? I'm sorry. Today, basically, was a soap opera ... and not one of those Spanish ones where the feminine-looking men walk around with their shirts off. It started off with sleeping through my first class ... Mom, don't read this ...

I missed my Cultures of Africa lecture - which is nowhere near half as interesting as it sounds. I went to Spanish, went to French, and went to get lunch. Almost. On the way, I ran into a friend's significant other, and was accused of endorsing alleged 'shady activity' (to which I plead 'not guilty'). Due to the freezing cold, I asked that the conversation be moved indoors so I could get lunch while I called for the friend to arrive on-scene. What seemed to me a harmless invitation to warmth and food turned out to be the tragic flaw: I offered lunch. GASP! (I should pursue law and criminal justice, shouldn't I ...) The friend, who joined after receiving my text, accused me immediately upon arrival of surreptitiously courting the significant other, in response to which I broke into tears *mascara story. Was this really happening? In a matter of - literally - minutes, things went from 'hello' to shouting, slapping, and storming off. Both parties involved returned to me (where I sat, crying to my Mom, eating my pizza bagel) on their own time to ask follow-up questions about one another ... ugh. I just won't have it. As my roommate would say, "I'm over it."

Moral of the story: if you hear a rumour about 'Rachel the Home-wrecker', you're reading her blog.

Charleston

2010-02-07T03:38:00.020-05:00

Charleston, South Carolina ... the city of fun love. Seriously! Every time I'm there visiting Kevin (who's with his mom in one of these), I feel like a giddy 8-year old. It's so warm, happy, polite, charming, quaint, and sunny ... and if not, then beautiful in the rain. Yes. All of those things. And for all you girls: author Nicholas Sparks is a fan of the city (well, the South, in general), and you might recognize some of these places from the film The Notebook. Actually, I'm pretty sure all of his stories take place in either North or South Carolina. Let's have a look-see : )

A Walk to Remember: somewhere in NC ...
Nights in Rodanthe: Rodanthe, NC
True Believer: Boone Creek, NC
At First Sight: Boone Creek, NC
The Choice: Beaufort, NC
Dear John: Charleston, SC
The Lucky One: Hampton, NC
The Last Song: Wilmington, NC

He has about five or six other books out .. but I think this gives you an idea. Don't just see the movies based on his books!! Read them!! They unfold slower than the films, and obviously go into more detail. If you're feeling a little let down by the way Dear John ended, read the book. So what if they're all sappy, unrealistic love stories ... release your inner romantic and indulge in something that has you applauding on one page and sobbing on the next. I might just add finishing his collection to the 2010 To-Do List . . . : )

Pago Pago

2010-02-01T05:01:00.003-05:00

Today's Fun Fact: I have to have a map in my bedroom. I think they do wonders for opening the mind. How else can you justify thinking about family in Kenya, elephants in India, surfing in Hawaii, shrimp fishing in Louisiana, alpacas in Peru, and the White Cliffs of Dover in a four minute time-span? I bought this map while I was in Paris, since the walls of my apartment were bare, and it is by far my favorite. It's antique in design and photo-editing, and shows "international flags, pennants, and Morse Code" as well as the military alphabet and sailors' knots. Fun to study. :)

Tumtumtum. I'm listening to John Mayer's Where The Light Is .. which is an absolutely phenomenal live recording of an L.A. concert. Man, what I would have paid to see that. I took Kevin to see one of his shows two summers ago when he came to play in the Baltimore area, and it's safe to say that that's when I truly fell in love with his music. Some people are better live than recorded .. and John Mayer is a testament to that. It's really late, but #64 on my 2010 To-Do List is to watch the sunrise on the first of every month. So, Happy February, everyone! Enjoy this nippy month of love and black history.

Sounio

2010-01-28T16:49:00.002-05:00

We hopped over to Greece for a bit during the same trip to Italy ... and wound up watching a beautiful sunset in Sounio, at the Temple of Poseidon. These are taken with the same camera, however I tried something different with the editing. Let's see how they came out ...

the Tyrrhenian Sea

2010-01-25T21:50:00.000-05:00

My dad let me borrow his camera in Italy and take a few pictures. Oh, how I'd love to be a photographer for Travel + Leisure, but some things will stay dreams for now! This was a Pentax AK10, and apparently those are "outdated and awful" .. boo. I had fun editing these, though, and I think they came out kinda fun, regardless. Wish me luck as I spend the rest of my youth saving up for a sweet DSLR :)

the children's library

2010-01-25T12:38:00.003-05:00

How fun are these illustrations? While I was in France, I picked up a copy of Kipling's Histoires Comme Ça (Just-So Stories) and immediately fell in love with the pictures inside. Entire pages are dedicated to these wood/stamp/etch-like pictures ... all showing animals and African scenes in bright colors. Just love it. The artist, May Angeli, wrote and illustrated a few more books, so here are their covers. Her style is so fun! Just thought I'd share :) I believe she's from Tunisia, so all of her stories are in French ... all the more reason why I can't wait until I have wee ones to read them to. Antoine de Saint-Exupéry has equally fun illustrations in his book, Le Petit Prince, which we just finished reading in my French literature class. Children's literature is so exciting ... makes me want to be a kid again! Oh the days ... enjoy :)

two thousand and ten

2010-01-23T20:36:00.017-05:00

With the start of the new year comes a new list of 'things' - ideas, desires, goals, habits to let go of, hobbies to pick up .. all sorts of 'things'. I often realize, during that late-December reflection period of looking back at the previous year, that I rarely follow through with everything I set out to accomplish. Well! This year .. I've made a 2010 To-Do List. I figured this would make a good first blog entry .. seeing as 'blog' is on the list :) Completed tasks are in bold, tasks in the works are orange, failed attempts are grey, and everything else has yet to be started. Inspiration for these came from lots of sources, and are sort of a compilation of personal desires as well as ideas from others. It will continue to grow, and continue to be checked off. Hopefully :)

2010 To-Do List

1. earn all A's.
2. get an apartment for next year!............................................................. Jan. 12
3. see the following plays and concerts:
..... Carmen......................................................................................................Mar. 20
..... Midsummer Night's Dream.................................................................. Jan. 22
..... the Magic Flute
..... Jonny Lang
..... Amos Lee
4. write thank you notes for everything.
5. make a decision between canon and nikon. .................................... Aug. 25
6. purchase one of the previous.
7. (which means no frivolous spending beforehand).
8. relocate for the summer......................................................................... May 10
9. read, understand, and live the new testament.
10. make a CD.
11. find Emily Cardaro (seriously, miss!)
12. donate bone marrow.
13. get an internship.
14. get a job. .................................................................................................. May 24
15. do laundry more than once a month.
16. gym 6x a week.
17. not swim in the ocean :(
18. read two books a month outside of class. ...................................................(4/12)
19. pet Merlin and not be afraid.
20. teach mom how to use her mac.
21. fly without fear.
22. put together a portfolio.
23. visit Nathan in Samoa.
24. go back to Paris?
25. see Dennis. on US soil. ....................................................................... Aug. 30
26. use my Spanish in a real-life situation.
27. blog things. ............................................................................................. Jan. 23
28. learn how to dance the Charleston.
29. wear more dresses when it's warm out.
30. NOT wear sweatpants to class! (mom'll like that)
31. write to people.
32. do something wonderful for Kevin's birthday.
33. hold off on the tattoos ...
34. ... no, i think a compass is next. (or a pineapple) .......................... Aug. 17
35. hold a baby. ............................................................................. Aug. 20, Nov. 20
36. take a GRE practice course.
37. bring a friend to church.
38. spend new year's eve outside the country.
39. go a month without pizza!
40. see a friend get engaged. ................................... Jesse, Francesca, and Lacey!
41. go to a wedding. ......................................................................... Hooray, Lacey!
42. sail. .......................... more or less ............................................................ Aug. 21
43. get a pair of yellow Hunter rain boots! (or white ones from Goodwill)
44. eat better.
45. pray more.
46. love in general.
47. learn to rollerblade.
48. go to 4 basketball games. ...................................................... 2/6, 11/10 (2/4)
49. plant a tree on my birthday.
50. watch a meteor shower.
51. make it to Cabo this year :)
52. take Kevin white-water rafting!!
53. ride a hot-air balloon with grandma.
54. ^ then get the hummingbirds she promised.
55. go to a concert with Cass for the 3rd summer in a row.
56. "reflect on your greatest weakness, and realize how it is your greatest strength."
57. see Mean Girls. ......................................................................................... Feb. 5
58. go well out of my way to surprise someone.
59. do something completely unforgettable.
60. record mom singing with her guitar.
61. go fishing.
62. make a 3-layer cake.
63. make a freakin' awesome sand castle.
64. watch the sunrise on the first of every month. ............................................(2/12)
65. beat Tochi at Scrabble.
66. go hiking.
67. re-learn ballet! and do it!
68. go ice skating on an outdoor rink.
69. go on a mission trip. ....................................................................... Oct. 28-31
70. apply for graduate school.
71. cook 1 new recipe a month.
72. avoid soda for a week.
73. pick a favorite wine. ......... Gotham Shiraz! ...........................,........... Aug. 26
74. figure out my blood type.
75. read all 15 of Nicholas Sparks' books ............................................... (3/15)

A Walk to Remember - (8th grade. i cheated!)
Nights in Rodanthe
True Believer
At First Sight
The Choice - 2/10
Dear John
The Lucky One
A Bend in the Road
The Notebook
The Last Song - 2/26
The Guardian
The Wedding
Three Weeks with my Brother
The Rescue
Message in a Bottle - 3/22