happy turkey day!

its that one day in the whoooole year again where everyone stops, takes a break from LIFE and sits down with the family for a nice meal and a thankful spirit. think of all the times in one year we are thankful for something - big or small. it would add up to a lot for each of us, im sure. despite your current circumstance, the hard times we may be facing at this moment, we can still give thanks and praise god for allowing every single thing to come into our lives and change us. because thats really what life is made up of, great things and small things which impact us in a way that eventually changes us, hopefully for the better. so today, im thankful for change. im thankful for everything i've experienced in the last 365 days that has caused me to change in some way or another. its been a long year, but i can be grateful for every obstacle i've faced, for every setback i've encountered and every challenge i will continue to conquer. and for that, im reminded of how blessed i am to have amazing, loving, caring people in my life to see me through the change- family. Happy Thanksgiving, remember to count every one of your blessings today!!

the secret to living a long happy life

today Oprah had the author of Blue Zones on and of all the places in the world where people live longest, Loma Linda, California happened to be one of them!!  9,000 Seventh Day Adventist believers reside here and it was amazing to see that our lifestyles and morals as well as deep rooted faith are recognized as key aspects in living longer and happier lives.  married for 58 years, what does 94 year old heart surgeon (who STILL performs over 12,000 surgeries per year) Ellsworth Wareham have to say about relationships??  "don't try to change them.  We all have different backgrounds, and we all have different genes.  [just remember to] let the person be who they are."

theres something to think about...

waiting for the turn

"when you get in a tight place and everything goes against you, till it seems as though you could not hold on a minute longer, never give up then, for that is just the place and time that the tide will turn."

- Harriet Beecher Stowe

tattoo drew

"i really have a good attitude about tattooing.  when i first got one, two years ago, i was like 'im not going to overthink this or what it means, or what it's going to be like when im 80.  i want to get tattooed today, and in five weeks, i'll get a spongebob tattoo.'  will i regret it someday?  i don't know, but im not going to deny myself this pleasure today because of what i don't know in the future."

-Marc Jacobs told the new issue of Rolling Stone

sounds like someone else i know.....EHHEM morrison pictured above.  

a lit candle

"fire can burn and wound us, but also test us, and leave us in its ashes stronger people."

thank you wisteria lane

paint, clarissa & chinese take out

so amazing how painting can be so inspiring... or at the very least tiring!  The girls and boys of residence 220 ave. B in the lower east side were gladly given a little assistance by, yours truly, to finish up the last of the framework to their hallways (if you can call it that...ha!).  Hallways, you must remember, represent more of, well, narrow walk ways in manhattan terms.  you're lucky if you can squeeze two through a hallway at once, and lets remember hallways aren't necessary isolated, elongated, or in any way shape or form big but its that informally comfortable teeny tiny way that makes you feel like you're really living in the city, & what more could you really ask for?  with a vintage leather couch and floor serving as chairs, and a trunk as a kitchen table we happily split up boxes of chinese food and a bottle of wine while discussing drew's aspirations to become the next great leather coaster maker.  honestly, a new apartment with the new paint smell can't be any better than here.   

jetbluin' out of the blues!

As i sit in the crowded & newly opened T5 terminal at JFK airport, the hustle and bustle of the world continues around me but leaves me untouched.  REally!  I feel confined to a little bubble of tranquility and peace.  Why?  Because I'm done hustling, papers turned in - homework done - tests taken [failed?] - and work complete for now.  key words: for now.  sometimes you just have to remove yourself from the chaos and take time to... oh yes, BREATHE.  that beautiful little thing that you do every second of every day that keeps you alive.  Family awaits me, and it's something I no longer take for granted.  Not that I feel I have, but, today, certainly in a stronger way than ever I appreciate that they'll be waiting for me on the other side.  6 hours, 32 blue chips, 25 back to back food network shows and a cat nap later I'll be home again.  No, I'll be family again.  I'll be whole.  complete.  Tough times challenge us day in day out, but there really is nothing else to get us through the turbulent, shaky, scary ups and downs life dishes without them.  Family: mom, dad, brother, they're all given as a precious gift without my choosing.  But luckily, family to ME is no longer defined by blood relativity.  Family has found me and blessed my life richly here on the east coast too.  Family has been found in the sisters I never had, and the relationships that provide more love and encouragement than I could ever ask for from people who just 4 years ago had never crossed my path.  So, in a sense, although getting on this plane will take me to the ones who raised me and have loved me through and through, it also means leaving behind my other family.  I'm blessed to have such loving people in my life and even more blessed to find them no matter which direction my little jetblue plane takes me.    

the side effects of love...

"Am I lonely?  Yes.  Am I upset?  Yes.  Am I confused?  Yes.  Do I have my days when I've thrown a little pity party for myself?  Absolutely.... I don't feel like a victim [though]....you get one day of being a victim - and thats it.  Then we take responsibility for our own input.  To live in a victim place is pointing a finger at someone else, as if you have no control.  Relationships are two people; everyone is accountable.  A lot goes into a relationship coming together, and a lot goes into a relationship falling apart."  -Jennifer Aniston

amen.

end of the year chills

There's a few days at the beginning-of-the-end of autumn when the air suddenly turns ice cold and the chilly breeze consumes you from the tip of your nose all the way into your lungs with every inhaling breath you take.  Walking around the city, there is just no better, cleaner, more refreshing feeling.  The chill is enough to make you dig your hands a little deeper into your pockets, and scrunch your shoulders up just a little higher than normal.  Suddenly I find myself picking up the pace trying to make it to the next warm building.  It's one of my favorite feelings, to step out and feel that coldness brush my face (especially the still coldness when there's no wind factor).  It is also one of my saddest feelings, because suddenly on one of these chilly days I realize the year is almost over.  With less than 2 months to go, the year is suddenly about to become part of history.  2008 has been a tumultuous year, to say the least.  We've been plagued with depression, economic downfalls, stress and everything else on the list.  But with the end of the year, comes the promise of the next.  It's sad to dwell on what has been, what could have been, and what never was in the last 10 months, but its also a great time to look forward to what may be in the year to come.  To think, this lengthy thought process was brought on by mother nature's cold kiss to my cheek...  

oh monday

The only good thing about weekdays is Regis & Kelly and Rachel Ray in the morning. Mondays make me yearn for a great quote to motivate me through the week. So here's today's, I ran into this in an old email from a friend and boy is it ever applicable:

"Go back to what's good, what's always there.
You woke up today. Just start walking. Whatever
it is, it'll pass. Time doesn't go backward,
thats one real blessing. Don't worry about the
things you can't control. Keep moving forward.
Stay positive."

Make a great week for yourself, I know I will [try very hard to]! :)

nacho night nirvana

Sunday is the dreaded day of homework & playing the catch up game with all 7 classes. Despite my persistence, I always have a drifting thought or two while studying. Today my drifting thought goes back to last night's nachos. Haystacks, rather. Kate & I made the best 8 layer nachos this world has ever seen. A pan filled to the top with chips, black beans, rice, left over shredded chicken & potatoes (in a YUMMO sauce), cabbage, cilantro, onions and a thick layer of cheddar cheese on top. I mean, if that doesn't melt your mouth I seriously doubt you love food at all! I won't even tell you about dessert - half baked chocolate chip cookies with vanilla bean ice cream - you'll just die.

friends & the city

Amazing how a day out in the city with your closest friends makes you feel less out of touch with the true meaning of FUN.  Friday was far beyond the normal scope of life for me here in the city.  Although it can be challenging living in a small world of 8 million, commuting on packed subway cars with the local bum hollering out for "your attention please," some days, like Friday, just make it all worth while.  After all, only some of TV's greatest shows are shot here and we were lucky enough to attend one of them!  Yes, our great super hero cook: Rachel Ray.  How brilliantly lovable and hilarious she was!!  I mean people, she does not disappoint!  She's just as bubbly and fun whether the cameras are rolling or not!  Love her.  Only one complaint for me and my besties: why no sampling of your food rach??  We really wanted to try some of your ancho chili!  At least we walked away with free magazines and a snack of the day...