All I want to do is travel,

and I'm so glad that it is summer! I will take this little blue suitcase to Montreal with me. Many adventures to be had. Cannot wait to be in the cool weather, speak French, visit an underground city, hopefully stay in a charming little room, take lots of pictures, and {technically} leave the country for the first time, even though I've been a lot farther from home than 13 hours before. OH! and read. a lot. Cafes. Walks in Vieux Montreal. Gahh.

build a fire

He came to raise up the dead.

La Dispute

I saw this band at the Canal Club last Tuesday. They're pretty big and I've been listening to them non stop for over a month now. The cool thing about this band is that even though it has mostly hardcore influence, the words behind the breakdowns are so poetic. Two full albums tell of a wife leaving a husband for another man. The lead singer Jordan is an incredible writer and I'm pretty convinced the heart wrenching words he sings is the story of his life. He was a really cool dude and I talked to him outside afterwards with Joe and Laura. I wanted to say "I'll be your new wife." buuut....too soon? ;) Anways, he hugged us all goodbye and was very kind. Even though I can't relate to being in a marriage and being cheated on/left by the love of my life, I seem to identify with this band. I think that somehow when a person is willing to not only be brutally honest, but also extremely vulnerable, it makes you feel like you know them. This show was so much fun, Connor and Tati got mad because I slipped my way into the front for the last two songs and got super rowdy being pushed around and screaming lyrics. They were just worried because there was some people there being violent but it was fine. Along with having a fun time jumping around, the show also moved my heart because these musicians have a genuine love for art and something really special happens when you hear deep poetic stories through music and then see it happen live.

In society today, marriage is looked at as something more along the lines of "I love you and will try to spend the rest of my life with you, for now." rather than a binding for life. Whether you believe it or not, the statistics show that half of marriages today fail. Yep, 50%. It's a sad place to be at. But La Dispute...man, Jordan just GETS IT. Marriage isn't {supposed to be} temporary, but permanent. Holy matrimony. He wanted to work through things, he tried, but she didn't. People rarely try to work through things anymore. It's everywhere in the lyrics - one of my favorite songs, Fairmount, says "Underneath the laughs there lies a need that nobody is getting. And an honesty that doesn't stretch far enough to show us all how much this will mean to us, my dear. And when we're old we'll tell ourselves that we did everything that we could to save this. But now--we do nothing. We were one. What are we now? We move as one." It's bold, and it's raw. It was magical to see the band members' passion come through when they performed. They believe and stand for every word that has been written.

I swear that even with the distance, slowly wearing at your name, your hands still catch the light the right way, and our hearts still beat the same.

Word.

starting after the 1:00 mark - her voice is soo good!!

Sometimes I hate myself because I can never get anything done. Not even things I like. Complete and utter lack of self-discipline.

quote from Free People

Be willing to surrender who you are for what you could become.

Seriously, such an inspiration.

"I find the whole concept of being ‘sexy’ embarrassing and confusing. If I do an interview with photographs people desperately want to change me - dye my hair blonder, pluck my eyebrows, give me a fringe. Then there’s the choice of clothes. I know everyone wants a picture of me in a mini-skirt. But that’s not me. I feel uncomfortable. I’d never go out in a mini-skirt. It’s nothing to do with protecting the Hermione image. I wouldn’t do that. Personally, I don’t actually think it’s even that sexy. What’s sexy about saying, ‘I’m here with my boobs out and a short skirt, have a look at everything I’ve got?’ My idea of sexy is that less is more. The less you reveal the more people can wonder."
-Emma Watson

L'art

Art art art. Thursday I went and saw the Picasso exhibit and yesterday I went to both Taylor's art showcase and a dance production. So art has been on my mind lately. Today I was grabbing lunch in a coffee shop with my dad and there happened to be some art on the wall for sale. The piece that was next to our table had maybe 3 or 4 colors in the whole things with different shades of blue and a couple other colors put on top. Your simple "anyone could do this" abstract...$950. Don't get me wrong, they're pretty and have the potential to compliment a wall quite nicely but...come on. Almost 1,000 dollars?
It makes me think. What art these days is actually DOING something? Whether "doing something" means your instrumental music awakens tears in people for unknown reasons or you can create a tangible object which drives people to give themselves a simple heart check. There's a spiritual aspect to some art that cannot be explained by everyone and that's what I love about it. And that's the kind of art that I truly cherish and makes me strive to do more in my own artistic endeavors.
At Taylor's art show, I took a picture of what he had put on the wall as sort of his theme for the showcase and what he was trying to convey through every piece. "I must become beneath the foundation which is seen. He must become more abundant, which is too often not seen. He built the foreground and deserves every ounce of it. It's a process of accepting. I am not." This overjoys me and I couldn't respect it more. Talk about art that is doing something. Love you like a brother. People try to make art so...artsy. When all you need is purpose. And as I sit here eating a little bowl of fruit loops, I'm reminded of the simple things in life. like Toucan Sam.

dove.

Those who are at war with others are only at war with themselves.

Yes.

Late night four square games in Huguenot Park. Monday nights = best nights.

DQ nitez

Hmmm

Too often trying to not scream.

Loco Retreat?

more like sunburn retreat!

fun weekend nevertheless :)