Monday, July 29, 2013

Recap!

Rather than try to remember every important thing that happened to me in the past year, I'm just going to do a picture show.  In order to truly experience this, though, I think it's best to make it a montage.  So please listen to this while you scroll.

"Slung-Lo" by Erin McKeown

Here we go!

I smoked cigars.  Like a lady.
I took family photos at 1AM after Foxy Shazam concerts....like a lady.
I slept sometimes.
But not...often.
People got married!
Batman happened.
I almost got eaten by this shark.
But I lived to sing another song.
I held this baby, and I didn't drop him once.
I was in a play for the first time in almost two years.
I FINALLY got my tattoo!
I went to see Rocky Horror again.
I found friends to play with me forever and ever.
This pin-up girl bachelorette party happened!
This guy got older.
I accidentally dressed up like Where's Waldo on a regular day.
I directed a show, and I was really proud of it.
Monty had a rough start to the year.
Cancer's a bitch, but he pulled through like a champ.
Though now he sits like this sometimes...
But enough about my stumpy cat, I was also in this play.
I went on a spontaneous adventure.  (This is pretty much all of it.  It was great.)
I made this face.
And this face.
And also this face.
It's cool.  This guy gets it.
I got inked yet again.
I read a really good book...
...and MacGuyvered this toilet.
And through it all, I had these people at my side.  And I'm pretty happy about it.

Saturday, July 27, 2013

Let's do this.

10 months.  9 days.  4 1/2 hours.  But I'm back.  And this time, I'm going to do my damndest to stick with it.  Because goals.  No apologies.  No regrets.  No promises.  Just goals.

Here are five things that I know:

1.  I like who I am today more than I did the last time I wrote an entry on this blog.  I'm not perfect.  I don't have things entirely sorted out.  But I've improved.  And I'm still improving.

2.  Sometimes, when something is so good it feels like there's no way it could last forever, that's because it's not supposed to.  A life well lived is in a constant state of flux.  Change is essential, and good memories are the true testament to success.  Let life live.

3.  Cheese is still delicious.  That is not a thing that will change.

4.  Sometimes, people prove that the world isn't a lost cause.  It's imperative to look for those moments and focus on them with all your might when you come across them.  Fill yourself with them, and you will be quenched when you suffer through a positivity drought later on.

5.  It's important to do at least one thing every single day that you feel passionate about.  That thing could be painting.  It could be writing a blog entry.  It could be as simple and seemingly meaningless as singing a song in the car that makes you feel better after a long day (mine is "Me & Julio Down By The School Yard").  It could be texting a friend to say hello.  It could just be the perfectly exquisite moment when you take your socks off at the end of the day.  Just as long as you acknowledge it.

I found my quote book on my bookshelf the other day.  For most of high school and college I carried around an increasingly battered composition notebook, which I filled with sayings and phrases I either heard or read.  Some of them don't speak to me the way they did when I penciled them in, but that's okay.  They spoke to me then.  But some of them still ring true.  I'll end this with a few of my favorites.

"Every person is just one, 'Oh, what the hell; why not?' away from a great adventure."  - Ryan McKernan

"There isn't enough time to do nothing!"  - Nate Higginson

"Who needs exercise when you can just laugh?"  - Rebekah Hudson

"Death's a comin' for ya, girl!  You've gotta grab life by the ass and cherish it!"  - Josh Fish